Today, the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA) announced its opening and closing night red-carpet galas. Anurag Kashyap’s GANGS OF WASSEYPUR will open the festival, while Deepa Mehta’s MIDNIGHT’S CHILDREN will feature as the closing night film. The full line-up of screenings and events will be announced by mid March. The festival is widely recognized as the premiere showcase of groundbreaking Indian cinema globally. Celebrating its 11th year, IFFLA will run April 9 to 14 at ArcLight Hollywood in Los Angeles, the festival’s home since its inception.
Epic in scope, GANGS OF WASSEYPUR is a mafia revenge saga chronicling the violent and bloody decade long turf war between two mob families. Set in the tumultuous times of India’s Independence and industrialization, GANGS is a powerful and gritty portrayal of an era past. Part I will screen as the opening night film, while Part II will screen the following evening. GANGS made its world premiere at the 2012 Cannes’ Directors Fortnight, to rave reviews. Director Anurag Kashyap first came to IFFLA in 2005 with his film BLACK FRIDAY.
“I am happy to be back where I started my journey, before my films got released, before they went anywhere they came to IFFLA,” said Kashyap. “I have been missing IFFLA for many years and this year, no way in hell am I going to miss it. ”
Oscar-nominated director Deepa Mehta brings her latest masterpiece, MIDNIGHT’S CHILDREN, to IFFLA, taking audiences on a poetic and visual journey scaling time and space. At the stroke of midnight on August 15, 1947, as India proclaims Independence from Great Britain, two newborn babies are switched at birth. Saleem Sinai, the illegitimate son of poverty, and Shiva, the offspring of upper echelon, are fated to live their intertwined destinies. With a star studded cast and lush cinematography, Mehta casts a spell of wonder, magic and delight. Narration is by Salman Rushdie, author of the epic and beloved Booker Prize winning classic novel. Deepa Mehta returns to IFFLA after her OscarÓ-nominated film WATER had its Los Angeles premiere at the festival in 2006.
“We’re delighted to welcome back two beloved filmmakers of IFFLA,” said Christina
Marouda, IFFLA’s Founder and Chair of the Board. “We believed in Anurag’s talent from the very beginning. We’re now thrilled to have him back as a worldwide acclaimed filmmaker. And we once again look forward to sharing Deepa’s new and always thought-provoking work with our Los Angeles audiences.”
Both films have played at top-tier festivals worldwide, garnering critical acclaim, and both will have their Los Angeles premieres at IFFLA. GANGS director Anurag
Kashyap and producer Guneet Monga, as well as Deepa Mehta of MIDNIGHT’S CHILDREN will be in attendance.
Tickets and Passes
The 11th Annual Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA) runs April 9-14 at ArcLight Hollywood located at 6360 W. Sunset Blvd between Vine and Ivar. Festival Passes and Gala tickets go on sale March 1 at the festival’s website. Individual screening tickets go on sale March 22. For more information please visit www.indianfilmfestival.org or follow us on Twitter (@iffla).
About IFFLA
Now in its 11th year, the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA) is a nonprofit organization devoted to a greater appreciation of Indian cinema and culture by showcasing films, honoring entertainment industry business executives, and promoting the diverse perspectives of the Indian diaspora.
The six-day festival is the premiere platform for the latest in cutting edge global Indian cinema and bridges the gap between the two largest entertainment industries in the world – Hollywood and India. The festival will showcase more than 35 films from the Indian filmmaking community across the globe, host the highly anticipated opening and closing red carpet galas, and the closing awards ceremony. This year will again bring back the wildly popular “Bollywood by Night” series, and feature seminars as well as live music and dance performances. IFFLA will also host the 6th annual Industry Leadership Awards, honoring entertainment industry executives who have demonstrated extraordinary leadership within and in relation to the Indian entertainment industry.
For more information: www.indianfilmfestival.org.
About ArcLight Cinemas
ArcLight Cinemas, created by Pacific Theatres, represents an evolution in the movie going experience. ArcLight Cinemas, with locations in Hollywood, Sherman Oaks, Pasadena, and El Segundo, offers an unprecedented combination of technology, amenities, comfort, and customer service. Facilities include the historic Cinerama Dome (only at the Hollywood location) and state-of-the-art “black box” auditoriums as well as a cafe bar and a cinema-focused gift shop. Tickets can be purchased online without a fee and printed at home and at the theaters’ automated ticketing kiosks. For more information about ArcLight visit www.ArcLightcinemas.com.
OPENING NIGHT GALA
GANGS OF WASSEYPUR I
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2012/159 minutes
Director: Anurag Kashyap
Writers: Zeeshan Qadri, Sachin Ladia, Akhilesh Jaiswal, Anurag Kashyap,
Producers: Viacom 18 Motion Pictures, Anurag Kashyap, Guneet Monga, Sunil Bohra,
Cast: Manoj Bajpayee, Richa Chaddha, Reema Sen, Tigmanshu Dhulia, Nawazuddin Siddiqui,
Logline: Vengeance is Inherited
Hindi with English Subtitles
CLOSING NIGHT GALA
MIDNIGHT’S CHILDREN
Los Angeles Premiere
Canada/United Kingdom/2012/148 minutes
Director: Deepa Mehta
Writer: Salman Rushdie
Executive Producers: Deepa Mehta, Dilip Mehta, Salman Rushdie, Doug Mankoff, Andrew Spaulding, Steven Silver, Neil Tabatznik, Elizabeth Karlsen, David Hamilton, Stephen Woolley
Producer: David Hamilton
Cast: Satya Bhabha, Shahana Goswami, Rajat Kapoor, Seema Biswas, Shriya Saran,
Siddharth, Ronit Roy, Rahul Bose, Anita Majumdar, Zaib Shaikh, Anupam Kher
