ACCLAIMED Indian director Anurag Kashyap’s Gangs of Wasseypur, based on thecoal mafia in north India, will open the third edition of the London Indian Film Festival next week.
Based on true incidents, the film – a revenge story set in Dhanbad, Bihar – was shown at the Cannes Director’s Fortnight in May, where it received a warm welcome. Kashyap described the five-hour 20 minute film as ‘a Bollywood-influenced gangster epic, part Western, part documentary’.
A wide range of films, from action to romance, will be showcased during the festival, which runs from June 20-July 2. In a first, the festival has teamed up with Tate Modern to present a showcase in Indian experimental film curated from Bangalore.
Festival director Cary Rajinder Sawhney said: ‘We aren’t just showing Indian films for Indian audiences, but opening the door to the rich diversity of cinema in India today, to all audiences.
Some of these films are kicking out the old stereotypes of Indian cinema. It’s great to be premiering these cutting-edge new films in London, during a year when the city is celebrating its cultural richness.’
* If you would like to win two exclusive tickets to the London Indian Film Festival, all you have to do is enter a special competition organised by money transfer specialists and event sponsor Western Union. To be in with a chance to win, leave a message for your favourite big screen icon at www.westernunion.co.uk.
For more information and to book tickets visit www.londonindianfilmfestival.co.uk
