The
Indian
Film
Festival
of
Melbourne
wrapped
up
the
much-anticipated
shooting
of
the
first
film
out
of
four
films
under
the
My
Melbourne
project.
The
film,
which
is
yet
to
be
named,
is
co-directed
by
Onir
and
William
Duan.
It
stars
Arka
Das,
Mouli
Ganguli,
and
Jackson
Gallagher.
The
film
was
shot
in
five
days
and
the
story
is
based
on
grief
and
forgiveness.
The
film
follows
the
reunion
of
a
queer
Indian
man,
Indraneel,
played
by
Arka,
and
his
father,
Mihir,
played
by
Mouli,
after
many
years
of
estrangement.
Onir
said,
"I
am
happy
to
be
part
of
My
Melbourne
as
it
is
a
unique
special
film.
It's
the
first
time
such
a
unique
cross-country
initiative
has
been
taken
to
bridge
cultural
ties
and
bring
the
two
communities
together
using
the
medium
of
cinema.
The
films
of
My
Melbourne
are
based
on
diversity
and
are
focused
on
bringing
forth
talent
locally
from
Melbourne
and
I
can
vouch
that
there
are
such
incredible
local
talents
waiting
to
be
discovered
and
this
project
has
done
just
that.
My
film
tells
one
such
story
of
an
integral
part
of
diversity,
bringing
forth
a
warm
story
of
a
father
trying
to
rebond
with
his
gay
son.
It
was
a
great
experience
to
work
and
collaborate
with
talent
from
Melbourne.
I
am
glad
that
Film
Victoria
and
Mitu
Bhowmick
Lange
have
taken
this
step
to
celebrate
cinema
and
diversity.
Mitu
Bhowmik
Lange,
director
of
the
festival
says,
"This
is
a
very
ambitious
project
of
love
celebrating
the
core
values
of
IFFM
-
Diversity
and
inclusivity.
The
key
idea
was
to
provide
a
platform
to
emerging
creatives
from
diverse
marginalised
backgrounds
from
various
walks
and
abilities
of
Australia,
mentored
by
some
of
the
world's
best
filmmakers.
It's
an
anthology
of
four
stories
weaved
into
one
feature
film
called
My
Melbourne
based
on
authentic
migrant
experiences.
We
cannot
be
what
we
cannot
see
"
For
the
unversed,
IFFM
is
one
of
the
biggest
film
festivals
abroad,
which
is
in
association
with
the
Australian
Government.
My
Melbourne
project
brings
four
iconic
filmmakers
from
India
to
mentor
young
filmmakers
from
Australia,
which
will
be
shot
in
Melbourne,
and
will
be
on
the
themes
of
Diversity
-
Race,
Disability,
Sexuality,
and
Gender.
Apart
from
Onir,
the
other
three
films
will
be
helmed
by
Kabir
Khan,
Imtiaz
Ali,
and
Rima
Das.