Tarsem Singh’s ‘Dear Jassi’ to open IFFLA 2024, film gala to take place from June 27-30

New Delhi, May 10 (PTI) Filmmaker Tarsem Singh’s “Dear Jassi” will serve as the opening film for the 2024 edition of the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA).

The film gala, which will run from June 27 to 30, will screen 20 films, including seven narrative features, twelve shorts, and one docu-series with a diverse line-up of films from India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan and the United States, a press release said.

“Dear Jassi” has toured various film festivals across the globe and follows Jassi, a Canadian-born Indian girl who falls in love with Mithu, a rickshaw driver from a lower social class. The movie features Pavia Sidhu and Yugam Sood in the lead roles.

Tamil superstar Vijay Sethupathi’s “Maharaja” will be bringing the curtains down on IFFLA. Directed by Nithilan Saminathan, the movie is an action-packed thriller about a group of men seeking revenge with twisted turns along the way.

Saminathan, along with the film’s cast and producer, will attend the premiere in LA. The festival will also screen “Kill”, an upcoming action thriller from filmmaker Nikhil Nagesh, and the Sundance winner “Girls Will Be Girls”, which is the maiden production venture of actor-couple Ali Fazal and Richa Chadha.

The line-up includes award-winning filmmaker Christo Tomy’s film “Undercurrent”, which explores the powerful themes of female solidarity; a tender love story “Ben and Suzanne, A Reunion in 4 Parts”, written and directed by Shaun Seneviratne; and “A House Named Shahana” by Leesa Gazi.

Besides, IFFLA will host a special screening of two episodes of documentary series “Defiance: Fighting the Far Right”, which shines a light on an extraordinary protest movement led by young British Asians in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s to oppose anti-immigrant rhetoric and assaults. The documentary is produced by Riz Ahmed and Rogan Productions.

The festival is also launching IFFLA Industry Day, the first-of-its-kind, day-long forum for South Asian film and TV executives and creatives sharing their stories within this underrepresented community, on June 28.

IFFLA Industry Day will spotlight exciting South Asian voices, while attendees will have educational opportunities to hear first-hand expert advice from industry professionals. The pinnacle event of Industry Day is ‘Launch Pad: A Pitch Competition’ the winner of which will receive a USD 10,000 development grant.

“The eclectic lineup covering most of the vast and diverse South Asian regions, including the diaspora, is directed by a majority of incredibly talented first-time filmmakers debuting with their works.

“The lineup organically reveals some of the themes such as solidarity and resilience, tender love, and familial violence, inherent to the South Asian communities around the globe,” said IFFLA’s Artistic Director Anu Rangachar.