Shahid Kapoor, Madhuri Dixit to add glitter to opening of IFFI in Goa

The grandeur of cinema will be the highlight at the 54th edition of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa with the opening ceremony being a star-studded affair. The ceremony will be headlined by actors Shahid Kapoor and Madhuri Dixit.

The event promises a blend of glamour and artistry, featuring not only the Shahid and Madhuri but also an ensemble of other stars including Shriya Saran, Nushrratt Bharuccha, Pankaj Tripathi, and the musical maestros such as Shantanu Moitra, Shreya Ghoshal, and Sukhwinder Singh. The ceremony is being hosted by Aparshakti Khurana and Karishma Tanna at Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Indoor Stadium. The film gala will be held in Goa from November 20 to 28.

At the ceremony, Madhuri will be recreating a medley of her chartbusters, with the actor sharing, “Cinema has given me so much, it’s time to give something back in return. What better way to do so than through song and dance which is integral to not just Indian cinema, but Indian culture as well”. Meanwhile, Shahid will perform on his hit numbers. “Performing in front of a live audience is something I’ve truly loved ever since I can remember… Thanks to IFFI I get to do that one more time in Goa,” he says.

Bharuccha will be celebrating The India Story through her performance, while Shriya taking the stage to perform on numbers such as Tamil song Allegra Allegra, Kannada chartbuster Ra Ra Rakkamma, Malayalam hit Kalapakkaara, and Show Me The Thumka.

At the opening ceremony, Karan Johar and Sara Ali Khan with the team of Ae Watan Mere Watan will unveil the first look of the drama-thriller. Sukhwinder will sing the film’s title track during the showcase. Pankaj Tripathi, Shantanu Moitra, Shreya Ghoshal and Taba Chake will step into the spotlight to introduce the crime-thriller Kadak Singh directed by Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury.

Actor Vijay Sethupathi would unveil the trailer of the black comedy Gandhi Talks, a silent film in a present-day setting revolving around four characters, played by Vijay Sethupathi, Arvind Swami, Siddharth Jadhav and Aditi Rao Hydari.

When it comes to the closing ceremony, it will be headlined by Ayushmann Khurrana and music composer Amit Trivedi. Ayushmann will deliver an energetic performance and will pay a tribute to Michael Douglas, the recipient of the Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award.

And Amit Trivedi will curate a special rendition of the Sounds of Bharat, alongside a medley of his superhit songs.

There will also be a specially curated performance by the ‘Harmony of the Pines’ orchestra of the Himachal Pradesh police arousing nationalistic fervour. The performances come in sync with the festival’s theme of ‘India through the movies’, showcasing the unity and diversity of our culture.

Talking about the festival, Union Minister of Information & Broadcasting and Youth Affairs and Sports, Anurag Singh Thakur says, “IFFI has been growing every year thanks to the passion of our filmmakers from across the country and the collaboration that we have been able to forge with the directors and producers from across the world. As we take forward Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of strengthening India’s global position across all sectors, cinema, arts and culture can empower our youth to foray on the world stage with stories that are global in essence and local at heart. Indeed, IFFI has become the perfect platform for establishing collaborations, joint productions and cutting-edge technology.”

The festival will be attended by Michael Douglas, Catherine Zeta Jones, Salman Khan, Vidya Balan, Anupam Kher, Vicky Kaushal, Sidharth Malhotra, Aditi Rao Hydari, and AR Rahman.