Panaji: The 54th edition of International Film Festival of India (IFFI) got underway with a star-studded ceremony at the Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Indoor Stadium here on Monday.
A highlight of the inaugural function was a special award for Madhuri Dixit.
The Bollywood diva, who ruled the Hindi film industry for almost two decades, was honoured with the ‘Special Recognition for Contribution to Bharatiya Cinema’ award.
Madhuri, who arrived at the inaugural function with husband Dr Shriram Nene, said she was ‘very very honoured’ to be getting the award.
“Having worked in this industry for many years, it feels great whenever I get an award… it gives me encouragement and motivation to do good work… will continue to do that,” Madhuri said.
Watch the video clip posted on X by ANI:
#WATCH | Goa: On being awarded ‘Special Recognition for Contribution to Bharatiya Cinema’ Award at the 54th International Film Festival of India, Actor Madhuri Dixit says, “I am very honoured to receive this award. These types of awards always encourage and motivate us to do more… pic.twitter.com/2ckFTSKyMz
— ANI (@ANI) November 20, 2023
Anurag Thakur, Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting and Youth Affairs & Sports, applauded Madhuri for her ‘unparalleled talent’.
“An icon across the ages, @MadhuriDixit has graced our screens with unparalleled talent for four incredible decades. From the effervescent Nisha to the captivating Chandramukhi, the majestic Begum Para to the indomitable Rajjo, her versatility knows no bounds. Today, we are filled with admiration as we present the ‘Special Recognition for Contribution to Bharatiya Cinema’ Award to the talented, charismatic actress who has redefined excellence in cinema, at the 54th International Film Festival of India. A celebration of an extraordinary journey, a tribute to an everlasting legacy!” Thakur tweeted.mong the galaxy of stars attending the opening ceremony were Sara Ali Khan, Pankaj Tripathi, Sunny Deol, Karan Johar, Shantanu Moitra, Shreya Ghoshal, Vijay Sethupathi and Sukhwinder Singh.
‘Catching Dust’, a thriller by award-winning British filmmaker Stuart Gatt, has been selected as the opening film of the nine-day festival.
‘About Dry Grasses’, helmed by Frenchman Nuri Bilge Ceylan, will be the Mid fest film and Robert Kolodny’s ‘The Featherweight’ has been selected as the closing film for 54th IFFI.
Bollywood filmmaker Rajkumar Hirani will be head of the five-member jury for the newly-instituted best web series (OTT) award. Others in the jury are Divya Dutta, Prosenjit Chatterjee, filmmakers Krishna DK and Utpal Borpujari, reported ANI.
A total of 32 entries across 10 languages from 15 OTT platforms have been selected for the inaugural best web series award.
