New York: New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF), North America’s oldest and most prestigious festival which features cinema from the global Indian community announced its 2023 winners at a star-studded event at the SVA theatre in New York City on May 14. Director Avinash Arun of ‘Pataal Lok’ fame captured top honors for his film ‘Three of Us’ winning Best Director, Best Actor and Best Actress awards for the leads, Jaideep Ahlawat and Shefali Shah respectively.
“On behalf of the entire board, I applaud all the winners and nominees. We are proud to continue our tradition of supporting and recognizing this stellar talent and bringing these acclaimed works to a new audience. This year, our aim was to reinforce the impact of Indian cinema on the global platform by bringing authentic storytelling reflecting the Indian experience.” said Dr. Nirmal Mattoo, Indo-American Arts Council (IAAC) Chairman.
Aseem Chhabra, Festival Director of NYIFF 2023, added, “I am delighted to announce that this year’s event has been very successful. A number of our screenings were completely sold out in our biggest theaters, offering audiences a memorable experience. Not only did they get the opportunity to mingle with renowned celebrities such as Manoj and Sharmila, but they also got engaged with numerous talented young filmmakers. It is with immense joy that we acknowledge an important milestone when a Malayalam film received the prestigious Best Film award at NYIFF. The selections made by our esteemed jury truly reflect the vast breadth and diversity of Indian cinema.”
Suman Gollamudi, Executive Director, added, “Our closing event was truly a testament to the New York community gathering together to celebrate Indian cinema. It is heartening to see all the positive messages streaming in and witness the incredible support we received from audiences and industry professionals alike,” added Suman Gollamudi, IAAC Executive Director. “It was personally a poignant and special moment to show a story centered around the relationship between a mother and her daughter on Mother’s Day.”
‘Saudi Vellakka’ won the Best Film award at the 2023 edition of the NYIFF, while Dhaware received the Best Director award for his critically acclaimed film ‘Three of Us’ starring Shah, Ahlawat and Swanand Kirkire.
Shah and Ahlawat won the Best Actress and Best Actor awards for ‘Three of Us’, which was the opening film at the festival. Deepti Naval and Kalki Koechlin-starrer ‘Goldfis'” was the film extravaganza’s closing title.
Film Dir. Avinash Arun Dhaware and Raj Ramachandran EVP, HCL
“Follower” received the Best Screenplay award, “To Kill a Tiger” won the Best Documentary (Short & Feature) and “Birah” won the Best Short (Narrative) award while Leslie Shampaine received the prestigious Best Documentary by a Woman award for “Call Me Dancer”.
“Footprints On Water”, starring Adil Hussain, won the prestigious title of Best Debut Film at NYIFF, as acclaimed by the Film Critics Circle of India.
The highlight of this year’s festival included a special New York screening of Rahul Chittella’s critically praised film “Gulmohar” starring cinema veterans Sharmila Tagore and Amol Palekar, and acclaimed actors Manoj Bajpayee and Simran.
Following the special screening of “Gulmohar” to a packed house, NYIFF Festival Director Aseem Chhabra moderated a Q&A session with the film’s team including Tagore, Bajpayee, actor Suraj Sharma, Chittella and cinematographer Eeshit Narain.
