Films such as ‘Gangubai Kathiawadi,’ ‘Badhaai Do,’ ‘Jai Bhim,’ ’83,’ and ‘Minnal Murali,’ among others, have been nominated for Best Film in the 13th edition of the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM).
Among this year’s major nominees are the stars and filmmakers/producers of films such as ‘Jai Bhim,’ ‘The Rapist,’ ‘Gangubai Kathiwadi,’ ’83,’ ‘Badhaai Do,’ and ‘Sardar Udham.’
Among the acclaimed indie films nominated are ‘Pedro,’ ‘Once Upon a Time in Calcutta,’ and ‘Fair Folk,’ while ‘Urf,’ ‘Ayena,’ and ‘Ladies Only’ are among the Best Documentary nominees.
Aside from the award, winners of Best Film, Best Indie Film, and Best Documentary receive state-of-the-art cameras from Black Magic Design.
Another notable feature is that the Best Film winner is automatically nominated in the Best Asian Film category at the prestigious AACTA Awards (Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards).
These awards will be included again this year, along with Best Series, Best Actor in a Series, and Best Actress in a Series. The nominations in these categories are led by ‘Mumbai Diaries,’ ‘Aranyak,’ ‘Mai,’ and ‘Yeh Kaali Kaali Ankhein.’
Best Actor nominees include Gopal Hegde for ‘Pedro,’ Rajkummar Rao for ‘Badhaai Do,’ Ranveer Singh for ’83,’ Suriya, Tovino Thomas, Vicky Kaushal, and Abhishek.
In the Best Actor (Female) category, Alia Bhatt, Deepika Padukone, Bhumi Pedenkar, Kokona Sen Sharma, Lijomol Jose, Shefali Shah, Sreelekha Mitra, and Vidya Balan are among the nominees.
The films ‘Joyland’ from Pakistan, ‘Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom’ from Bhutan, ‘No Man’s Land’ and Rehana Maryam Noor from Bangladesh, and ‘The Newspaper’ from Sri Lanka have all been nominated for Best Film From the Subcontinent.
The Victorian Government presents the annual festival, which takes place in Melbourne, Australia, and showcases the best films from India and the subcontinent. This year’s festival runs from August 12 to August 20. The awards ceremony is scheduled for August 14.