SYDNEY: The South Asian Film Festival of Australia (SAFFA) recently concluded its three-day festival, showcasing films from South Asia that engaged audience here. Held from 17-19th March at the HOYTS in Blacktown, Sydney, the festival received over 2000 film submissions and saw more than 500 attendees.
Many well-known personalities graced the grand opening of SAFFA on 17 March, including Indian actor and jury member Vipin Sharma, Australian actor/filmmaker Arka Das, Greens Senator David Shoebridge, Deputy Mayor Parramatta Council Mr. Sameer Pandey, former senator Lee Rhiannon, filmmakers – Genevieve Bailey, Anupam Sharma, Ana Tiwary, David Capra, and leading community members like Anurag Sharma, Shekar Mani, Zia Ahmad, Saba Zaidi, Sanjay Deshwal, Navneet Anand, Abbas Reza Alvi, and Anuj Kulshrestha. The event was hosted by Sydney’s popular MC Jazeel Mistry.
The SAFFA awards were also handed out, with the Best Australian film award going to the documentary Helicopter Tjungarrayi, the Best Documentary Film award going to the film Aamir – A Trial for Life, and the Best Short Film award going to the film Birani.
Dr. Vikrant Kishore, the festival co-director and Associate Professor at the University of Nottingham, expressed his gratitude to the community for their overwhelming support of SAFFA, while Vivek Asri, the festival co-director, was thrilled by the response of the audience to the original South Asian stories showcased at the event. Taneem Mannan, a festival core team member, shared his experience as a filmmaker and lover of cinema, “It was a unique opportunity to showcase the rich diversity of storytelling and filmmaking that comes out of this region.
Through this festival, we aimed to break down stereotypes and celebrate the beauty of South Asian culture,” he said. While Achala Datar, another festival core team member, shared her hope that SAFFA will unite the community to become part of the storytelling through such initiatives. Abbaz Zaheer, a cultural enthusiast and festival core team member, expressed his pride in showcasing the diverse and vibrant cinema of South Asia to the Australian audience.
The festival was a unique opportunity for emerging and established filmmakers to exhibit their work and engage in dialogue and networking. The organisers hope to continue supporting and promoting diverse voices in cinema through future events and initiatives.
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