Goa IFFI takes off in company of stars

Aamir Khan made an appearance, Manisha Koirala was seen in the crowds, Dilip Kumar wooed with panache and A.R. Rehman left all gaping.

In a break from tradition at the star-studded launch of the 35th International Film Festival of India, a music and dance show preceded the inaugural movie. Premiering the music from the yet-to-be-released Subhash Ghai flick Kisna, Rehman regaled the audience with two yet-to-be-titled songs by newcomer Sunitha Sarthy (English) and Udit Narayan and Madhushri. The orchestration was countered only by a performance by Kisna heroine Isha Sherwani, who performed a jazz ballet on one of the movie’s tracks. Mira Nair’s Vanity Fair followed suit.

Earlier in the evening, veteran Dilip Kumar proved why he’s lauded as a fabulous actor. The 82-year-old, blaming a fast-slipping memory, gave the audience several reasons to laugh, as he first forgot Information and Broadcasting Minister Jaipal Reddy’s name, then his spectacles, and later on switched flawlessly from English to Urdu, realising that mid-sentence.

Reddy stuck to the serious, by announcing that the National Films Division Corporation along with the Confederation of Indian Industry, realising ‘‘the film industry’s potential’’ have invested Rs 25 lakh in IFFI’s ‘‘market’’ segment.