‘Bhubaneswar Film Festival’ from June 6 to 9
Films in 9 languages including Odia to be screened, Prominent personalities from Bollywood and Ollywood to participate, Daily film screenings from morning till evening, Special masterclasses on acting and screenwriting
Bhubaneswar, June 4: The second edition of the Bhubaneswar Film Festival (BFF) is set to take place at Jayadev Bhawan in Bhubaneswar from June 6 to 9. This four-day event will showcase classic films in nine different languages, including Odia.
Films will be screened daily from 10 a.m. to evening, and the event will be open to Odia cinephiles.
The first edition of the Bhubaneswar Film Festival was organized in 2024 by the Bhubaneswar Film Circle and received a positive response from the audience. Encouraged by this, the second edition is being held this year.
The inaugural ceremony of the festival will take place on June 6 at 7 p.m, with popular directors, producers, actors, and actresses from both Bollywood and the Odia film industry participating.
Nine Odia films—based on Odia literature and novels, and winners of national awards—have been nominated for screening. On the opening day (June 6), films such as ‘Matira Manisha,’ ‘Ka,’ and ‘Bhakta Salabega’ will be shown. On June 7, the national and state award-winning film ‘Kalira Atita’ will be screened. On June 8, ‘Krantidhara’ will be shown, and on June 9, films like ‘Yajabara,’ ‘Nirbachana,’ ‘Kanaklata,’ and ‘Adina Megha’ will be screened.
Apart from Odia cinema, the festival will feature notable films from other languages, including Gujarati film ‘Bhavani Bhavai’** directed by Ketan Mehta, Kannada film ‘Ghatashraddha’ by Girish Kasaravalli, Urdu film ‘Hamid’, Marathi film ‘Shwaas’, Chhattisgarhi film ‘Bhulna the Maze’, Hindi film ‘Damul’ by Prakash Jha, Tiwa language film ‘Sikha Lasaal’ directed by Bobby Sarma Baruah, Bengali film ‘Meghe Dhaka Tara’ by Ritwik Ghatak, Hindi film ‘Ankur’ by Shyam Benegal.
A major highlight of the festival will be two masterclasses—one on screenwriting and another on acting. On June 7, a screenwriting masterclass will be held at Gitagovinda Sadan*, led by renowned Bollywood screenwriter Charudatta Acharya. On June 8, a masterclass on acting will take place at the Odisha Press Club, conducted by acclaimed acting coach Abhimanyu Ray, who will provide training and guidance to aspiring young talents.
The festival will also feature the Guru Dutt Memorial Lecture, delivered by noted film critic and author Satya Saran. Additionally, a tribute session on filmmaker **Ritwik Ghatak will be led by well-known critic and writer Soma Chatterjee.
This year, five eminent personalities** will be felicitated for their outstanding contributions to the Odia film industry. They include Veteran music director Tansen Singh, Senior actors Shyamendu Bhattacharya and Jaya Swami, Costume designer Nirmal Das
Art director Banchhanidhi Pattnaik.
The Bhubaneswar Film Festival is being organized through the efforts of its convenor, **writer and filmmaker Sanjay Pattnaik**, along with **film critic Ashok Palit**, **Bollywood director and sound engineer Subhas Sahu**, and **actor Sukanta Rath**.