The grand celebration of 100 years of Indian cinema kicked off here with the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne that will showcase over 60 films in the course of 20 days.
A programme of 15 Indian classics including 'Pather Panchali', 'Sholay', 'Achut Kanya' and 'Garam Hawa' will be screened in a bid to capture the glorious journey of Indian cinema.
The festival began today with a special tribute to Yash Chopra and a retrospective on Amitabh Bachchan.
A special initiative of Victorian government along with Mind Blowing Films company, IFFM is expected to boost the bilateral ties between the two countries.
Louise Asher, State minister for Innovation, Services and Small Business, festival ambassador Vidya Balan and celebrities like Simi Garewal, Farah Khan, Prabhudeva, Girish Kumar and Kabir Khan marked the opening of the festival today.
Asher said delivering an Indian film festival in Melbourne was a key part of the coalition government's commitment to closer engagement between India and Victoria.
"The festival kicks off tonight with a screening of the silent film 'Raja Harishchandra', which marks 100 years to the day since its first screening and the birth of Indian cinema.
"Last night, I had the honour of presenting an award to Pamela Chopra on behalf of late Yash Chopra, for his contribution to world cinema. In honouring Yash Chopra, the festival will feature a retrospective of his work and some of his most beloved classics including screening his final film 'Jab Tak Hai Jaan'," Asher added.
As an effort to further boost India links, the La Trobe University has also announced naming its Agora cinema as 'The Yash Chopra cinema' for a year.
