DIFF 2023: Varun Grover’s All India Rank to open the festival, Manoj Bajpayee’s Joram to close the festival

Dharamshala International Film Festival (DIFF) 2023 has announced the 12th edition, showcasing the recent and outstanding independent films from India and around the world. The 12th edition of the festival will be held at Tibetan Children’s Village in Upper Dharamshala, from November 4 to November 7. The festival will also have a virtual edition which is scheduled from November 8 to November 14.

This year DIFF will have 92 films from 40+ countries, including 31 feature narratives, 21 feature documentaries, and 40 short films.

Major Highlights of the festival include:-

1) Varun Grover's debut feature, All India Rank, is the Opening Night film of the 12th edition.

2) Devashish Makhija's Joram is the Closing Night film. Both directors will attend the festival and present their films.

3) Celebrated Tamil filmmaker Pa. Ranjith and Academy Award-winning producer Guneet Monga will headline engaging discussions and masterclasses, offering a unique opportunity for attendees to gain insights into the world of cinema.

Indian highlights include:-

1) The World Premiere of Bottle Radha (India, 2023), produced by Pa.Ranjith and directed by Dhinakaran Sivalingam

2) A Match (Sthal) (India, 2023) by Jayant Digambar Somalkar; Family (India, 2023) by Don Palathara

3) Joram (India, 2022) by Devashish Makhija

4) All India Rank (India, 2022) by Varun Grover

5) Amar Colony (India, 2022) by Siddharth Chauhan

6) The Lotus And The Swan (India, 2023) by Nirmal Chander

7) Follower (India, 2023) by Harshad Nalawade

8) Tora’s Husband by Rima Das (India, 2022)

9) The Winter Within (Maagh) (India, France, Qatar, 2022) by Aamir Bashir

10) Guras (India, Nepal, 2022) by Saurav Rai

Non-fiction highlights include:-

1) Towards Happy Alleys (Be Kucheye Khoshbakht) (India, 2023) by Sreemoyee Singh.

2) The World Is Family (Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam) (India, 2023) by Anand Patwardhan

3) Against The Tide (India, France, 2023) by Sarvnik Kaur

4) Dr. B. R. Ambedkar: Now & Then (India, 2023) by Jyoti Nisha

5) While We Watched (Namaskar Main Ravish Kumar) (India, 2022) by Vinay Shukla

6) Our Film (Mhara Pichchar) (India, UK, 2023) by Dakxin Chhara

7) The Golden Thread (Paat Katha) (India, 2022) by Nishtha Jain.

Films to be premiered at DIFF 2023 are:-

1) Asia premiere of Songs of Earth (Norway, 2023) by Margreth Olin

2) South Asia premiere of Call Me Dancer (India, USA, Israel, UK, 2023) by Leslie Shampaine and Pip Gilmour

3) No Winter Holidays (Ḍhōrapāṭana) (Nepal, 2023) by Rajan Kathet and Sunir Pandey.

4) India Premieres of Brothers (Bratya) (Kazakhstan, 2022) by Darkhan Tulegenov

5) Angela Davis: A World of Greater Freedom (Portugal, 2023) by Manthia Diawara

6) While the Green Grass Grows (Switzerland, Canada, 2023) by Peter Mettler

7) Bawa's Garden (UK, Sri Lanka, 2022) by Clara Kraft Isono

8) A Holy Family (Taiwan, France, 2022) by Elvis A-Liang Lu.

9) Afire (Germany, 2022) by Christian Petzold

10) Autobiography (Indonesia, France, Singapore, Poland, Philippines, Germany, Qatar, 2022) by Makbul Mubarak

11) The Blue Caftan (France, Morocco, Belgium, Denmark, 2022) by Maryam Touzani

12) Frybread Face and Me (USA, 2023) by Billy Luther

13) In Our Day (South Korea, 2023) by Hong Sangsoo

14) Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell (Vietnam, Singapore, France, Spain, 2023) by Thien An Pham

15) The New Boy (Australia, 2023) by Warwick Thornton

16) Paradise (India, Sri Lanka, 2023) by Prasanna Vithanage

17) Perfect Days (Japan, 2023) by Wim Wenders

18) Sultana's Dream (Germany, Spain, 2023) by Isabel Herguera

19) Terrestrial Verses (Iran, 2023) by Alireza Khatami

20) Ali Asgari World War III (Iran, 2022) by Houman Seyedi

21) The Mother of All Lies (Morocco, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, 2023) by Asmae El Moudir

22) Theatre of Violence (Denmark, Germany, 2023) by Emil Langballe and Lukasz Konopa.

According to the press release, Indian celebrities including Roshan Matthew and Darshana Rajendran will be attending the festival along with filmmakers like Pa.Ranjith, Dhinakaran Sivalingam, Varun Grover, Nishtha Jain, Sreemoyee Singh, Anand Patwardhan, Devashish Makhija, Don Palathara, Dominic Sangma, Jayant Digambar Somalkar and Harshad Nalawade. International filmmakers, Prasanna Vithanage (Sri Lanka), Sepideh Farsi (France), Clara Kraft Isono (UK), and Rajan Kathet (Nepal) will also attend the festival.