International Film Festival of India
The International Film Festival of India (IFFI), founded in 1952,[1][2] is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia. Held annually, currently in the state of Goa, on the western coast of the country, the festival aims at providing a common platform for the cinemas of the world to project the excellence of the film art; contributing to the understanding and appreciation of film cultures of different nations in the context of their social and cultural ethos; and promoting friendship and cooperation among people of the world. The festival is conducted jointly by the Directorate of Film Festivals (under Ministry of Information and Broadcasting) and the state Government of Goa.[3]
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| Location | Goa, India |
|---|---|
| Founded | 24 January 1952 |
| Awards |
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| Hosted by | Government of Goa Directorate of Film Festivals |
| Website | www |
Vision
Ayam nijam paroveti gananā laghuchetasām, Udāracharitānām tu vasudhaiva kutumbakam[4]
(Extract from the Vedic scripture Maha Upanishad, meaning "This is for me and that is for other – is the thinking of a narrow-minded person. For those who are broad-minded, liberals, or noble people, the entire world is a one big family.")[4]
History
The 1st edition of IFFI was organised by the Films Division, Government of India, with the patronage of the first Prime Minister of India. Held in Mumbai[2] from 24 January to 1 February 1952, the Festival was subsequently taken to Madras, Delhi, Calcutta and Trivandrum.[5] In all it had about 40 features and 100 short films. In Delhi, the IFFI was inaugurated by Prime Minister Pt Jawaharlal Nehru on 21 February 1952.[6]
The first edition was non-competitive, had 23 countries including the United States participating with 40 feature films and about a hundred short films. The Indian entries for the festival were Awara (Hindi), Patala Bhairavi (Telugu), Amar Bhoopali (Marathi) and Babla (Bengali). This was the first International Film Festival held anywhere in Asia. The notable films shown during the festival were Bicycle Thieves, Miracle in Milan, Rome, Open City from Italy. Yukiwarisoo (Japan), The Dancing Fleese (UK), The River (USA) and The Fall of Berlin (USSR).
It was for the first time that the Indian Film Industry was exposed to a vast range of outstanding post-war era films. From the 3rd edition in January 1965, IFFI became competitive. It has since then moved to Trivandrum, capital of Kerala. In 1975 the Filmotsav, non-competitive and to be held in other film-making cities in alternate years, was introduced. Later, Filmotsavs were merged in IFFI. In 2004 the IFFI was moved to Goa from Trivandrum. Since then IFFI has been an annual event and competitive.[7] The venue for the second festival held in 1961 which was also non-competitive was New Delhi. The third edition of the festival was chaired by Satyajit Ray. For the first time the festival became competitive, and was graded ‘A’ category by the Paris – based Federation International de Producers de Films.[8] With this recognition the festival in India came on par with Cannes, Berlin, Venice, Karlovy Vary and Moscow International film festivals.[9]
Following this recognition, India adopted, at its fifth festival in 1975, a permanent insignia. This comprises a representation of the peacock, India’s national bird, with a permanent motto of the festival ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ (The whole world is a family). The same year it was decided to hold a non-competitive festival of festival films (Filmotsav) alternating with IFFI. While the Filmotsavs were organized at major film – producing centres of India, IFFI was held in New Delhi only.[9]
The venue being the same for all festivals, the fourth and fifth festivals were held from 5–18 December 1969 and 30 December 1974-12 January 1975 respectively. From the sixth festival onwards the period as well as the dates for the festival were fixed as 3–17 January every alternate year. The sixth festival was held in 1977 and silver peacock for best actor, actress and director was awarded for the first time. A film market was also set up for the first time by the IMPEC. The Indian Panorama section was instituted from this edition.[9]
Chronology of IFFI and Filmotsav
| Edition | Year | Venue | Competitive [8][10][11] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 24 January 1952 | Mumbai | No |
| 2nd | 27 October – 2 November 1961 | New Delhi | No |
| 3rd | 8–21 January 1965 | New Delhi | Yes |
| 4th | 5 – 18 December 1969 | New Delhi | Yes |
| 5th | 30 December 1974 – 12 January 1975 | New Delhi | Yes |
| Filmotsav | 14 November 1975 | Kolkata | No |
| Filmotsav | 2 – 15 January 1976 | Mumbai | No |
| 6th | 3–16 January 1977 | New Delhi | Yes |
| Filmotsav | 3 -16 January 1978 | Chennai | No |
| 7th | 3–16 January 1979 | New Delhi | Yes |
| Filmotsav | 3 -16 January 1980 | Bengaluru | No |
| 8th | 3–16 January 1981 | New Delhi | Yes |
| Filmotsav | 3 -16 January 1982 | Kolkata | No |
| 9th | 3–16 January 1983 | New Delhi | Yes |
| Filmotsav | 3 -16 January 1984 | Mumbai | No |
| 10th | 3–16 January 1985 | New Delhi | Yes |
| Filmotsav | 10–24 January 1986 | Hyderabad | No |
| 11th | 10–24 January 1987 | New Delhi | Yes |
| Filmotsav | 10–24 January 1988 | Thiruvananthapuram | No |
| 12th | 10–24 January 1989 | New Delhi | No |
| IFFI '90 | 10–20 January 1990 | Kolkata | No |
| IFFI '91 | 10–20 January 1991 | Chennai | No |
| IFFI '92 | 10–20 January 1992 | Bengaluru | No |
| 24th | 10–20 January 1993 | New Delhi | No |
| 25th | 10–20 January 1994 | Kolkata | No |
| 26th | 10–20 January 1995 | Mumbai | No |
| 27th | 10–20 January 1996 | New Delhi | Yes – Asian Women Directors |
| 28th | 10–20 January 1997 | Thiruvananthapuram | No |
| 29th | 10–20 January 1998 | New Delhi | Yes – Asian Directors |
| 30th | 10–20 January 1999 | Hyderabad | No |
| 31st | 10–20 January 2000 | New Delhi | Yes – Asian Directors |
| 32nd | 2001 – Cancelled | Cancelled | No |
| 33rd | 1–10 October 2002 | New Delhi | Yes – Asian Competition |
| 34th | 9 – 19 October 2003 | New Delhi | Yes – Asian Competition |
Permanent Venue
Since 2004, starting from the 35th edition, the International Film Festival of India, became globally competitive, and moved to its permanent venue Goa, and is being held during the months of November and December of each year.[12][13] The dates for the festival vary each year and there are no fixed dates.
Golden Peacock Award winners (Feature Films)
Golden Peacock Award winners (Short Films)
| Edition | Film | Country [8] |
|---|---|---|
| 3rd | Cyclone |  Cuba |
| 4th | Taking off at 1800 Hours | Cuba |
| 5th | Automatic |  Czechoslovakia |
| 6th | After the Silence |  India |
| 7th | An Encounter with Faces Olympic Games | India Poland |
| 8th | A Period of Transition |  Denmark |
| 9th | Not Awarded | Not Awarded |
| 10th | Narcissus | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Canada |
| 11th | Not Awarded | Not Awarded |
Silver Peacock Awards
- IFFI Best Actor Award (Male)
- IFFI Best Actor Award (Female)
- IFFI Best Director Award
- IFFI Best Debut Director Award
- ICFT UNESCO Gandhi Medal
- Life Time Achievement Awards
- Second Best Film
- Special Jury Awards
Indian Film Personality of the Year
- Since 2013, on the occasion of 100 years of Cinema of India, the "Centenary Award" for the "Indian Film Personality of the Year" was instituted. The annual award is presented to an Indian film personality for their outstanding contribution to the Indian Film Industry through their craft. This Award consists of a Silver Peacock Medal, a certificate and a cash prize of ₹ 10,00,000.[14][15]
| Edition | Image | Awardee | Craft |
|---|---|---|---|
| 44th | .jpg.webp) |
Waheeda Rahman | Actress |
| 45th |  |
Rajinikanth | Actor |
| 46th |  |
Ilaiyaraaja | Composer |
| 47th |  |
S. P. Balasubrahmanyam | Playback singer and composer |
| 48th |  |
Amitabh Bachchan | Actor |
| 49th |  |
Salim Khan | Screenwriter |
| 51st |  |
Biswajit Chatterjee | Actor |
Miscellany
- The first IFFI was held in 1952, and American director Frank Capra attended as a part of the US delegation.[16]
- On the eve of IFFI 2006, journalist and author Mario Cabral e Sa's book Location Goa, highlighting Goa's contribution to the Hindi film world, was released on 21 November 2006.
- Since 2004, Goa has hosted IFFI every year. This brings in more visitors to the State, and also coincides with the novenas and feast of the 16th-century Basque missionary-saint Francis Xavier.
- In 2017 edition, IFFI recognized the innovative works of 15 people and companies that had made significant contribution in developing technologies related to media. A special exhibition was held to showcase their work throughout the course of the festival. The recognized personalities included Mithaq Kazimi, Greg Acuna among others.[17]
- In January 2021, due to Covid-19 pandemic, the 51st edition of IFFI for year 2020 was held as hybrid event, there was physical and virtual screening of 50 films out of 224 films across various categories. In addition many online events were organised.[18] Two Goan films were selected for screening in premium and non-premium sections.[19]
References
- M. Mohan Mathews (2001). India, Facts & Figures. Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd. pp. 134–. ISBN 978-81-207-2285-9. Retrieved 31 October 2012.
- Gulzar; Govind Nihalani; Saibal Chatterjee (2003). Encyclopaedia of Hindi Cinema. Popular Prakashan. pp. 98–. ISBN 978-81-7991-066-5. Retrieved 31 October 2012.
- "Key highlights of the 46th International Film Festival of India". PIB. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
- "A Festival Showcasing Talent of Lights, Camera and Action! – International Film Festival of India – 2011". Archived from the original on 18 December 2012. Retrieved 31 October 2012.
- Saverio Giovacchini; Robert Sklar (1 December 2011). Global Neorealism: The Transnational History of a Film Style. Univ. Press of Mississippi. pp. 179–. ISBN 978-1-61703-122-9. Retrieved 31 October 2012.
- Jawaharlal Nehru (1972). Selected works of Jawaharlal Nehru. Orient Longman. p. 311. ISBN 978-0-19-563745-8. Retrieved 31 October 2012.
- "International Film Festival Of India 2017 | Goa Film festival | IFFI Awards | Onmanorama". OnManorama. Retrieved 2017-11-18.
- http://rrtd.nic.in/iffi-2002.htm
- "One of Asia's First Film Festivals – IFFI over the years". 3 October 2017.
- ":: Welcome To IFFI ::". www.iffi.nic.in.
- "INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL OF INDIA – A CHRONOLOGY". inbministry.blogspot.in.
- "rediff.com, Movies: 32nd International Film Festival of India cancelled". www.rediff.com.
- "New MoU needed for Goa as permanent venue – Times of India".
- "Who will be the Indian Film Personality of the Year at IFFI 2017?". 8 November 2017.
- "Waheeda receives Indian Film Personality of the Year award at IFFI".
- Capra, Frank. The Name Above the Title: An Autobiography Vintage Bools, New York, 1985, p. 43
- https://iffigoa.org/tech-media-startup-participants-2017/
- Swati Mathur (15 January 2021). "First hybrid edition of IFFI to go live from January 16; of 224 films, nearly 50 to be available online". Times of India. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
- Kimberly Colaco (14 January 2021). "Meet these Goan directors whose films have made it to IFFI 2021". Times of India. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
