Two-day International Film Festival of Srinagar opens to jam-packed audience

Srinagar : With much fanfare and ceremony, ‘The International Film Festival’ of Srinagar (TIFFS) began with the first-ever Red-Carpet show for the local artists present here in Srinagar on Saturday, October 29, 2022.

TIFFS took place at Tagore Hall over the course of two days, on October 29 and 30 with 30 foreign submissions screened, including short films, documentaries, and music videos. A  large crowd attended the inaugural ceremony. Divisional Commissioner Kashmir P.K. Pole was the chief guest on the occasion. Manoj Kumar Pandita, AIG, PHQ and Satish Vimal, writer, poet, and senior broadcaster were the guests of honor.

The event started with the traditional Rouf and solo dance followed by a welcome address by Festival Director Rohit Bhat.
“We felt a strong urge to bring Srinagar its own international film festival, with Srinagar embedded into it. More than the name, it is the history, contribution, and spirit that Srinagar has brought to cinema that it was about time that it got an international film festival with its name associated with it”, Bhat said.
Pole expressed happiness that the film festival has got such a good response and delegates from all over India are attending it. He also hoped that international delegates would be hosted in future editions and make this festival a truly international destination for cinema lovers.
Senior artists from Kashmir walked the Red-Carpet.In the opening section films from France, Georgia and Pakistan were screened.

“We are very delighted that we have received such an overwhelming response for the film festival in Srinagar. Drawing from our experience of the Jammu film festival, we will make TIFFS an international festival to reckon with in the coming times. We are grateful to the artist fraternity, our sponsors and people in general for all the support that we have got”, said Rakesh Roshan Bhat, the festival co-director.

The panel of judges included Iranian filmmaker Alimohammad Eghbaldar, Content consultant and critic Amit Singh from Mumbai and playwright and director Rakesh Roshan Bhat. The panel is headed by Sangeet Natak awardee and well-known actor-director Mushtaq Kak.

“We are presenting the best of world cinema to cinema lovers in Srinagar. It is an excellent opportunity for the youth of J&K to learn and network, ” said Ashok Saraf, the festival’s advisor.

“We will have a separate section for J&K where we will showcase work from local talent. We have tried to accommodate most of the local projects for screening” added Mushtaq Kak, the jury head.