Pakistan International Film Festival kicks off with a bang

Four-day event is being held at various locations across Karachi from March 29 to April 1

KARACHI: The very first edition of the Pakistan International Film Festival (PIFF) kicked off in Karachi on March 29.

The first day of the event – which is being held in multiple locations across the city through to April 1 – saw a delegation of prominent Indian filmmakers and artists discuss several topics with their Pakistani counterparts at Ziauddin University. Further, short films, feature films and documentaries were screened at Nueplex Cinema, Iqra University, Goethe Institute, The Second Floor (T2F) and Alliance Francaise.



Film-maker Vishal Bhardwaj of Haider fame, actor Nandita Das and sarangi player Harsh Narayan joined screenwriter Anjum Rajabali, Asim Raza and Sajal Aly in a panel discussion about Indo-Pakistan collaborations, moderated by Asif Noorani. They spoke of the political friction between the two countries, past collaborations and how to keep art and cultural exchange alive despite everything.

Another session titled ‘Innovation on Screen: Digital Dimensions’ saw Abrar Ali Khan of Rockville and Farees Shah from Iflix discuss the possibilities and expansion of digital media.



Further Sanam Saeed, Aamina Sheikh and Adnan Malik-starrer Cake also premiered as part of the festival and received a thunderous response from those present. Many Pakistani celebrities such as Syra Shahroz and Ayesha Omar graced the red carpet, as did Bheja Fry 2 actor Vinay Pathak. Umar Riaz’s debut documentary feature Some Lover to Some Beloved, which took him seven years to complete, was also screened.

PIFF, being the first large-scale film festival since the Kara Film Festival years ago, has brought the local film community alive again and opened doors to more exchanges and interactions with artists from across the border, as well other international film-makers.

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