When the curtains rise on the 24th Pune International Film Festival (PIFF) this January, the spotlight will not only shine on world cinema but also on the enduring brilliance of Guru Dutt—one of India’s most revered filmmakers, directors, and actors.

​When a VCR first arrived in our village, we didn’t even know what a cinema was. The owner would sell tickets in a big hall and play films on a colour TV. He was a friend of my father, so one day he invited us children to watch a movie. Our whole family went. The film was ‘Jai Santoshi Maa’, and I must have been three or four years old.

Set against the turbulent backdrop of 1920s British India, ‘Kakori’ marks the centenary of the legendary Kakori Rail Action, honouring the fearless revolutionaries who challenged colonial rule.

The ‘Sound of Cinema’ is resonating to the highest in the air of Goa, as the International Film Festival of India has stepped into the penultimate day of inauguration of its 56th journey from 20th to 28th November.

The world of radio was a magical gateway where voices wove dreams and songs touched hearts. Binaca Geetmala was the brightest star of that era, captivating millions of listeners every Wednesday evening since 1952 with Ameen Sayani’s honeyed voice and the charm of film songs.

Since 1952, the International Film Festival of India has stood as South Asia’s only International Federation of Film Producers' Associations-accredited festival in the Competitive Feature Films category, signalling its stature on the global cinematic map.