A
documentary
feature
on
Mahatma
Gandhi
and
another
on
legendary
Satyajit
Ray
are
part
of
the
line-up
of
58
films
that
will
showcased
next
month
at
the
virtual
edition
of
the
21st
New
York
Indian
Film
Festival
(NYIFF).
The
NYIFF,
presented
by
the
Indo-American
Arts
Council
(IAAC),
will
run
from
June
4-June
13
virtually.
It's
the
second
year
in
a
row
that
the
oldest
and
prestigious
film
festival
that
features
cinema
from
India
and
diaspora
has
gone
online
due
to
the
COVID19
pandemic.
Award-winning
filmmaker
Prithvi
Konanur's
Pinki
Elli?
(Where's
Pinki?)
will
serve
as
the
opening
film
at
the
festival.
The
documentary
on
Gandhi,
Ramesh
Sharma-directed
Ahimsa
Gandhi:
The
Power
of
the
Powerless,
will
serve
as
the
festival's
centerpiece
film
along
with
Ajitesh
Sharma's
WOMB:
Women
of
my
Billions.
Ramesh
Sharma
decided
to
make
Ahimsa
Gandhi:
The
Power
of
the
Powerless
in
2019,
when
the
world
commemorated
the
150th
birth
anniversary
of
Mahatma
Gandhi.
Shot
in
India,
South
Africa,
the
US
and
Europe,
the
documentary
tracks
the
influence
of
Gandhi's
non-violence
approach
on
world
leaders
including
Martin
Luther
King
Jr,
late
Congressman
John
Lewis,
former
South
African
president
Nelson
Mandela
and
the
Dalai
Lama.
International
musicians
U2
and
AR
Rahman
have
contributed
to
the
title
track
of
the
documentary,
the
NYIFF
said.
The
festival
has
selected
1984
documentary
The
Music
of
Satyajit
Ray
to
celebrate
the
birth
centenary
of
the
globally
renowned
filmmaker,
writer,
illustrator
and
music
composer
who
had
been
awarded
the
Bharat
Ratna
and
an
honorary
Oscar.
The
film
is
based
on
interviews
with
the
filmmaker,
who
passed
away
at
the
age
70
in
1992,
and
consists
a
montage
of
Ray's
works
and
rare
recording
sessions.
IAAC
Executive
Director
Suman
Gollamudi
said
that
last
year
the
film
festival
had
to
be
reimagined
in
a
virtual
format
and
it
involved
pivoting
to
an
online
platform.
"We
emerged
stronger
with
a
larger
footprint
as
global
audiences
engaged
with
the
films.
This
year,
with
the
pandemic
creating
even
more
distress,
we
feel
a
greater
responsibility
to
provide
filmmakers
an
outlet
to
showcase
their
work.
Plus,
offer
audiences
hope
through
cinematic
stories
that
give
meaning,
form
and
shape
to
lift
our
emotions,"
she
added.
The
virtual
festival,
powered
by
technology
service
provider
for
indie
filmmakers
and
festivals
MovieSaints,
will
feature
screenings
of
23
narrative
features,
8
documentary
features
and
27
short
films.
NYIFF
Festival
Director
Aseem
Chhabra
said,
"We
aimed
to
truly
underscore
the
NYIFF
commitment
to
diversity
and
cultural
representation
in
film."
This
year,
the
festival
will
feature
films
in
15
languages
including
Assamese,
Bengali,
Hindi,
Kannada,
Kashmiri,
Malayalam,
Manipuri,
Marathi,
Oriya,
Telugu
and
Urdu.
The
line-up
includes
National
Award-winning
films
like
Khisa,
Sonsi
and
Biryaani.
IAAC
Chairman
Dr
Nirmal
Mattoo
said
the
festival
line-up
reflects
the
'incredible
diversity' of
Indian
cinematic
creativity.
For
the
first
time,
the
2021
lineup
truly
reflects
the
incredible
diversity
of
Indian
cinematic
reativity.
This
standout
collection
of
films
introduces
new
voices,
fresh
perspectives
and
original
storytelling,
which
enhances
the
NYIFF
curatorial
legacy
of
spotlighting
movies
that
go
on
to
receive
critical
global
acclaim.
The
curtains
will
brought
down
by
Fire
in
the
Mountains,
the
award-winning
movie
by
Ajitpal
Singh,
which
has
been
selected
as
the
closing
night
film.