IFFI promises to bring Cannes' glory to India

Screenings on beaches and a film festival on the river bank, a la Cannes, are the special attractions of the 37th International Film Festival of India (IFFI), starting from November 23 here in Panaji, that promises of 240 hours of entertainment and fun.

A carnival parade along the banks of Mandovi River and air-show by the Indian Navy's Sagar Pawan will mark the opening of the prestigious IFFI 2006 in Panaji at 4.30 pm.

Veteran actor, Shashi Kapoor will be the chief guest, while Bollywood actor Anil Kapoor and Bengali actor Prosenjit Chatterjee will be the guest of honour at the opening ceremony which will be followed by the screening of the Penelope Cruz-starrer comedy, 'Volver'.

Over 200 films will be screened during the 11-day international event, wherein 3,500 delegates from across the world are expected to be in Goa. The curtains will come down on the mega film event, in the presence of Bengali actor-director Aparna Sen, with 'Babel' starring Brad Pitt being the final film of the IFFI 2006.

The tourism-centric Goa has been hosting the annual festival since 2004 and thanks to former chief minister, Manohar Parrikar, who brought this event to Goa, whereas, a carnival of Bollywood stars "" Salman Khan, Priyanka Chopra, Bipasha Basu, Diya Mirza, Malaika Arora Khan, Soha Ali Khan and Esha Deol (all from Bollywood), Prabhu Deva (south India), Manoj Tiwari (Bhojpuri film industry), Marathi actors Sachin and Supriya and Harbajan Mann of Punjab "" are expected to mark their presence at the function.

The annual carnival, this year, will include a competition for feature films by Asian, African and Latin American directors, according to the organisers.

The festival will provide a 'common platform' for the filmmakers to project their excellence in film art, contribute to appreciation of different film cultures and of course promote friendship.

Set up by the Goa government in 2004, the Entertainment Society of Goa "" a nodal agency to host the IFFI "" has set a goal to frame an entertainment policy and to help cultivate Goa into a world-class international entertainment nerve centre of the country.

'Salaam Boss', a concert paying tribute to the music director, late Rahul Dev Burman, 'Pop Extravaganza', a Konkani inspired music concert and a music concert by the international music band Boney M also form a part of the IFFI 2006 programmes.