NEW DELHI: The first-ever Udaipur International Film Festival commencing later this week will feature 47 feature and short films.

The festival will open on 15 September morning with the short film ‘Open Doors’ and close on 16 September with ‘Meherjaan’ by Rubiyat from Bangladesh starring Jaya Bachchan among others.

The festival will be held at two venues in the lake city, and has been organized by the organisers of the annual Jaipur International Film Festival with the support of the Western Zone Cultural Centre.

A total of 21 countries are taking part in the two-day festival. The festival will also feature animation films and documentaries.

Noted film maker Govind Nihalani, film director Subhash Kapoor and film writer Jalish Sherwani will be the special guests for the opening ceremony at Darpan Auditorium in Shilpagram. The screenings will take place in the Celebration Mall-Lower Ground Atrium.

The countries participating include the United States, France, England, South Africa, Germany, India, Iran, Peru, Canada, Australia, Spain, Iraq, Norway, Georgia and Bangladesh.

The Festival will commence with a tribute to Rajesh Khanna, Dara Singh and A K Hangal.
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There will be a seminar on ‘The 100 years of Indian Cinema’, cultural concerts will be held along with the seminars and workshops for the youngsters on the important subjects like ‘Film Script Writing Workshop’ at Darpan Auditorium both days.

A poster exhibition will also be held with original posters of the landmark films like Mother India and Mughal-E-Azam etc.

Films like ‘Mombatti’ (Cannes) and ‘Road to Home’ (Oscar) are being screened. There will be six films by the prominent filmmaker and social activist Iara Lee who had earlier come to the Jaipur festival. Her film ‘Cultures of Resistance’ won the ‘Green Rose’ in the Red Carpet Award Ceremony.

This year, she has attempted to expose the exploitative face of the American capitalists through various documentary works. Her works highlighted the negative influence of America in various parts of the world including Iraq, Afghanistan and Africa.

Other films include the documentary ‘Jungle Mein Jalianwala’ by Anurag Sharma based on the massacre of the tribal communities within the state of Rajasthan during the British era.