2 films from J&K to be screened at Goa Festival

Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Nov 12: Two films from Jammu and Kashmir in the non-feature category will be screened at the 44th International Film Festival of India (IFFI), which will begin on November 20 in Goa.
“’23 Winters’, a bilingual film in Kashmiri and Hindi by Rajesh S Jala, and ‘Shepherds of Paradise’ in Kashmiri, Gojri and Urdu by Raja Shabir Khan, are the two films from the State  that will be screened at Goa,” Additional Director General (Media and Communication) Press Information Bureau Srinagar Obaidur Rahman told reporters here.
Rahman said, “the festival will be attended by Academy Award winning Hollywood actor Susan Sarandon, critically acclaimed Iranian producer-director Majid Majidi and Polish filmmaker Agnieszka Holland along with luminaries from Indian cinema including actor Rekha and singer Asha Bhosle.”
Legendary actor Manoj Kumar will officially flag-off the Indian Panorama Film section during the inaugural ceremony of the festival. ‘The Don Juans’, a comedy-drama by Czech filmmaker, will open the film festival, while ‘Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom’ directed by Justin Chadwick and written by William Nicholson will be the closing film of IFFI 2013.
As many as 15 films from around the world will vie for the coveted Peacock Awards at the festival, with the International Competition features with prize money amounting to a total of Rs 13.2 crore.
“Sixteen non-feature films, covering various regional languages have been selected for screening at IFFI 2013. Besides these, 26 feature films will be shown in the Indian Panorama section during the 11-day festival,” he said.