Mumbai, Sep 27: With a star-studded red carpet, the Yellowstone International Film Festival (YIFF) is set to open with the India premiere of fantasy feature film Fairy Folk starring Rasika Dugal and Mukul Chadha followed by the Delhi screening of Faraz Ansari’s short film Sheer Qorma and a panel discussion with the star cast. The festival is back after a gap of two years and this time, it will follow a hybrid form.
In its 3rd edition, the YIFF will have a red carpet premiere and closing night at on ground while the rest of it will run virtually. So, there will be 10 physical screenings and 46 virtual screenings.
Curated by director Tushar Tyagi, whose short film ‘Saving Chintu’ was qualified for Oscars 2021, it has had over 1500 film submissions from around 122 countries. The programming team, as the Tushar explains, took over six months in screening the entries, meticulously handpicking 56 films, including features, shorts, animations and documentaries.
Commenting on the festival, Tushar Tyagi said, “We are living in extreme uncertainty, the current pandemic, ongoing war, and other calamities in the world need us to introspect on our lives and the things we often shy away from talking about. Cinema has always played an integral part in churning debates and opinions, our selection of films promises to nudge those thoughts.”
On Shabana Azmi to be conferred with the Lifetime Achievement Award, he says, “We at YIFF want to honour her outstanding contribution to the world of cinema.”
Showcasing 50 plus shorts, documentaries and feature films from United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Australia, Brazil, Canada, India, Cyprus, Italy, Netherlands, Chile, Spain, Pakistan, Belgium, Turkey, Srilanka, New Zealand and Sweden, the festival kick-starts on September 30 at DLF Cyberpark, Gurgaon.
The festival closes on October 7.
About the films:
Fairy Folk is writer-director Karan’s labour of love starring real life husband wife actor duo Rasika Dugal and Mukul Chada. It is a film about ‘Thorny questions of love and sexuality, which takes centre stage.
Sheer Qorma is a story of belonging and acceptance, identity and family told through courageous, queer women who choose to embrace love that exists beyond their personal beliefs and social moralities. Directed by Faraz Ansari the film stars veteran actress Shabana Azmi, Divya Dutta and firebrand Swara Bhaskar.
Shabana Azmi to receive Lifetime Achievement Award at Yellowstone International Film Festival
