The Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM), which celebrates Indian cinema outside of India, will kickstart from August 15 and will continue till August 25, 2024. The prestigious film festival showcases a diverse range of Indian films. The film festival announces 'My Melbourne' as the opening night film for its 15th edition.

'My Melbourne' brings together four astute Indian filmmakers- Kabir Khan, Imtiaz Ali, Onir, and Rima Das. It is an anthology of short films centered around the city of Melbourne. 'My Melbourne' is inspired by true incidents, and each short film explores the themes of race, gender, sexuality, and disability, reflecting the core values of diversity and inclusion. The films in the anthology are 'Jules' by Imtiaz Ali, 'Setara' by Kabir Khan, 'Emma' by Rima Das, and 'Nandini' by Onir.

Mitu Bhowmick Lange, Festival Director of IFFM, expressed her excitement: "We are thrilled to open this year's festival with 'My Melbourne,' a film that truly encapsulates the essence of our festival's mission to celebrate diverse voices. This project is a testament to the power of storytelling in bridging cultures and fostering understanding."

Director Imtiaz Ali, in a statement,said that he was moved by the story of two very different yet displaced women in marvellous Melbourne and to being the film to life with the bright and diverse group of young, local minds, turned out to be a huge learning experience for him. ''I could share my insights and test my ideas freely with the different creative voices that comprised the team and all of us came out richer from the wonderful My Melbourne experience. Hope you like our piece – Jules in My Melbourne,'' he added.

Kabir Khan said that after hearing the story of Setara for the first time in 2021, he was immediately drawn towards it. Kabir also said that true stories that show the triumph of the human spirit always have a special appeal for him. He added, ''Setara's unique escape from Afghanistan to Melbourne and her finding a sense of belonging through cricket made this a story I had to tell. Working with local emerging creatives and the wonderful girls' cricket teams of Melbourne made this an even more authentic and wonderful experience”.

Rima Das called it a very emotional and uplifting experience'' and added, ''The theme of our film is disability and we wanted to keep it very authentic and real. We worked with a mix of senior actors and relatively new actors, including members of the deaf community. I am happy with the outcome and look forward to seeing how the audience receives the film. I hope it initiates dialogue about how we can be more inclusive in all walks of life, including art and welcome diverse perspectives and narratives especially from those living with disabilities.''

''My Melbourne for me is a film that celebrates what Melbourne stands for… A space that embraces diversity and celebrates inclusion. The film captures this essence through various migrant experienceshexa988,'' said Onir.

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