It’s a wrap on Bengaluru International Film Festival 2024

This year’s Bengaluru International Film Festival (BIFFes), held between February 29 and March 7, was all about cinematic excellence. With over 180 feature films and documentaries screened across three locations and 13 screens, the week-long festival pulled in close to 50,000 attendees.
As for the goals they set for this year, artistic director N Vidyashankar says, “Our focus was on the best of contemporary cinema in the last year and less known languages. We showcased films in Tulu, Konkani, Boro, etc. and also celebrated 90 years of Kannada cinema.”
Director Girish Kasaravalli , whose 1997 film Thaayi Saheba was screened as part of the celebration of Kannada films, tells us, “I was the director of BIFFes during its first three chapters and I always made it a point to showcase 10 classic films from across the globe. While this year’s edition showcases Kannada films I think they should include classics from everywhere in each edition. The audience responds to it positively and I believe the younger generation should be shown the history of world cinema.”
Director BS Lingadevaru, who was on this year’s festival jury, says, “Indian cinema faces the challenge of who the audience is going to be. You have parallel cinema, which is mostly screened at film festivals, and the other is commercial films.”
On Thursday, the winners of various categories were announced. Director and stage designer MS Sathyu was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award and Arabic film Inshallah Boy won Best Film in the Asian Cinema category. Marathi film Shyamchi Aai and Tulu film Nirvana won in the Chitrabharti Cinema and Kannada Cinema categories, respectively. Filmmaker Madeleine Blackwell whose film Damage (2023) was screened, says attending BIFFes showed her that cinema is thriving. “So many films of diverse languages being screened showed me that cinema is in a healthy state,” she says, adding, “I concentrated on Indian films and I found them fabulous! The programming was extraordinary as well.”
Attendees also loved this year’s lineup. Sharath Vashisht, a city-based filmmaker shares, “I’ve been attending BIFFes for nine years. I can say that the quality each year is better than the last. There were a lot more films, which I appreciated.” Writer Pooja D, says, “I enjoyed the diversity on offer this year. I could sense the excitement, as most screenings had long queues and everyone wanted to watch all kinds of films.”