Australia to Launch National Indian Film Festival in 2025

BOLLYWOOD BONANZA

The Australian Centre for Indian Cinema is set to launch the National Indian Film Festival of Australia (NIFFA) across seven cities from Feb. 13-16, 2025, marking the country’s first nationwide celebration of Indian cinema.

The festival has secured partnerships with exhibitor Dendy Cinemas, Indian media giant NDTV, and cinema advertising firm Val Morgan. Filmmaker Anupam Sharma will head the initiative, with industry veteran Peter Castaldi serving as festival director.

NIFFA will host screenings in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide, Gold Coast, Darwin, and Hobart. One city will be selected to host the opening night festivities, workshops, and panels focusing on investment opportunities and co-production development. The festival plans to offer development grants for Australia-India screen content, with details to be announced in November. An Australia-India co-production treaty was ratified in 2023.

The festival has secured support from Indian film distributors across Australia, New Zealand, and Fiji, including Forum Films. Additional partners and program details will be unveiled at IFFI Goa in November, where Australia is the focus country. The complete festival program will be announced on Jan. 6, 2025.

The Indian Film Festival of Melbourne, which is separate from NIFFA, has been operating for 15 years.

NUMBERS NEMESIS

India’s Jio Studios and Baweja Studios have partnered for “Khwaabon Ka Jhamela,” a romantic comedy helmed by Danish Aslam (“Break Ke Baad”) set to premiere on streamer JioCinema Nov. 8. The film stars Prateik Babbar, Sayani Gupta and Kubbra Sait.

Shot across India and the U.K., the story follows Zubin, who has a knack for numbers not romance, who faces rejection from his fiancée Shehnaz due to intimacy issues. His path crosses with Ruby, an intimacy coordinator, leading to unexpected developments.

The film is produced by Jyoti Deshpande, Pammi Baweja, Harman Baweja and Vicky Bahri. The project marks the second collaboration between the studios following “Mrs.,” starring Sanya Malhotra.