The 1st Himalayan Film Festival concluded successfully on September 28 at Sindhu Sanskriti Hall, Leh.

The five-day-long festival received 100 entries from Himalayan states/UTs. A total of 26 films were screened and 18 entry films recommended by the jury were also screened. A total of 21 films made by Ladakhi filmmakers received in the competition section were also screened. Master Class sessions with Priya Krishnaswamy, S. Nallamuthu, Nila Madhab Panda, Phontsog Ladakhi and In-Conversation sessions with Anupama Chopra, Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Nikhil Talegaonkar and Kirti Kulhari was also held.

The film festival was organised by the Administration of UT Ladakh in collaboration with the Directorate of Film Festivals and Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Leh. The festival is a part of the celebration of ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ commemorating 75 years of India’s Independence.

Secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB), Government of India (GoI), Apurva Chandra, and renowned Filmmaker Rakyesh Ompraksah Mehra were the special guests on the closing ceremony.  The festival concluded with the screening of the internationally acclaimed film ‘Shepherdess of the Glaciers’ by renowned Ladakhi filmmaker Stanzin Dorjai.

Inaugrating the film festival on September 24, Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Anurag Thakur congratulated UT Administration and LAHDC for organising the event. He termed cinema as one of the effective mediums to foster cultural diversity.

He spoke about the diverse culture in the Trans Himalayas starting from Ladakh to North-Eastern states. “The region has a lot to showcase and youths of the region need to be nurtured with opportunities”, he added.

He assured to give a new identity to the mountains in the film industry under his government in collaboration with the industry.  The minister announced that the transmission of DD Kendra Leh programme would be extended to one hour from half an hour from October 1, 2021. He said that this will enhance the outreach of AIR and DD in the region and provide a platform to young local talents.

Anurag Thakur also spoke about the emergence of OTT as a popular entertainment platform for the people especially during the Covid-19 pandemic. He said that the OTT traffic is increasing and India has the potential to become the sub-continent of content creation. He assured to connect Ladakh with the Film & Television Institute of India (FTII) at the earliest.

‘Shershah’ biographical war film based on Param Vir Chakra awardee Capt. Vikram Batra was screened at the opening ceremony. Makers and cast of the Bollywood movie Shershah, including director Vishnuvardhan and lead actor Sidharth Malhotra attended the opening ceremony of the festival. The movie is being screened first time on the big screen after its release.

Lt. Governor Ladakh said that the idea of the film festival first started within the council and the UT administration decided to organise it at a grand level. He said that there is a large number of talented young men from Ladakh in films, photography and many creative sections.  The administration is looking forward to give technical skills to them so that films from Ladakh could reach far and wide.

He expressed happiness about the success of the festival and said that the Himalayan Film Festival should continue as an annual event and be a platform to showcase the talent of the Himalayan region. He said that for better training of Ladakh’s film aspirants, the administration is working towards tying up with the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune for providing courses in Ladakh. Expressing his fondness for the Ladakhi folktale Gyalam-Kesar, LG Mathur hoped to watch it in the form of a motion picture someday.

Secretary, I&B, GoI, Apurva Chandra, appreciated the maiden attempt by the Administration of Ladakh in successfully conducting the first edition of The Himalayan Film Festival and suggested taking up the idea of organising a national level festival on short films to encourage aspiring filmmakers from smaller regions like Ladakh. He requested the Ladakh Administration to draft a film policy and provide incentives to the filmmakers to shoot in Ladakh. He assured all possible support to the filmmakers of Ladakh from the MIB.

Renowned filmmaker Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra suggested making the Himalayan Film Festival, the international Himalayan Film Festival in future. He proposed to invite interns from Ladakh to his production house and also said that he is willing to spend a month in Ladakh each year to impart skill training to aspiring filmmakers.

A short film on late Tashi Rabgias was screened during the event to felicitate the eminent scholar and historian from Ladakh.Veteran film personalities from Ladakh, including Late Tashi Rabgais, Ali Mohd, Morup Namgyal, Tsering Stanzin , Mipham Otsal, Phonsok Ladakhi and Haji Mohd Hussain, were felicitated.

A Ladakhi Film, ‘Sekool’ Screenwriter, Stenzin Tankong won the Best story award  and film ‘Shadey- A Forgotten Land’, Editor Stanzin Gurmet Phyang receive the Best Editor award.