The MAMI Mumbai Film Festival, one of Asia’s most prestigious cinematic events, returns for its 2024 edition (19-24 October). This six-day celebration of global cinema, creativity, community, and culture will showcase 110+ films from over 45 countries—spanning 50+ languages, lengths and genres—as part of the Official Selection. (Also read: 2024 edition of MAMI Mumbai Film Festival to take place from October 19 to 24)
MAMI 2024
Building on the success of last year’s inaugural South Asia Competition, the Main Competition section continues to highlight the strongest voices among independent filmmakers from South Asia and its diaspora. The expanded vision of the erstwhile ‘India Gold’, already very popular among independent filmmakers in the country, continues to successfully attract some of the best talent from across the region to compete with their feature films.
This year’s competition comprises 11 features with a wonderful representation of seven South Asian and diaspora films, alongside four Indian features. The line-up has a mix of fiction, documentary and animation as well as internationally co-produced films and independent sole productions. Five of the competing directors are women, and most of the films are South Asian Premieres, with a line-up that includes World, Asia, and India Premieres. Two of the competing films are official Oscar submissions from their respective countries.
The Focus South Asia section includes films of all lengths, with the non-features grouped into packages. The non-competitive feature films in this section offer a diverse and dynamic array of storytelling, including two films on South Asian themes by non-South Asian directors. The eclectic selection explores a broad spectrum of unique and demanding experiences, from a deeply personal narrative to a postmodern take on superstardom, making this section a rich exploration of the South Asian experience.
The World Cinema section will showcase some of the most celebrated films of the year. Among the big-ticket films are The Room Next Door by Pedro Almodóvar, Emilia Pérez by Jacques Audiard, The Substance by Coralie Fargeat, A Different Man by Aaron Schimberg, Cloud by Kiyoshi Kurosawa, Harvest by Athina Rachel Tsangari, Suspended Time by Olivier Assayas, Rumours by Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson & Galen Johnson, April by Dea Kulumbegashvili, and Universal Language by Matthew Rankin.
The festival will open screens across the city to thousands of cinema lovers, offering a selection of some of the best films from around the world. The lineup includes winners of prestigious international awards, such as the Caméra d’Or and Jury Prize winners from the Cannes Film Festival, the Silver Bear winners from the Berlin International Film Festival, the Audience Award winner from the Sundance Film Festival, the Golden Lion and Jury Prize winners from the Venice International Film Festival.
MAMI will also screen the official submissions to the 2024 Academy Awards (aka the Oscars) from countries like Argentina, Canada, Denmark, France, Ireland, Japan, Nepal, Norway and the United Kingdom.
SOUTH ASIA COMPETITION
This is the main competition section of the festival. The section aims to showcase breakthrough contemporary South Asian and South Asian diaspora films of the year.
With films representing 10 languages and 12 countries, the competition exemplifies the festival’s dedication to discovering new talent while championing the innovative and transformative power of cinema.
Agent of Happiness by Arun Bhattarai, Dorottya Zurbó
Nepali, Dzongkha, English | Bhutan, Hungary | South Asia Premiere
Girls Will Be Girls by Shuchi Talati
English, Hindi | France, India, Norway | South Asia Premiere
Kiss Wagon by Midhun Murali
Malayalam | India | South Asia Premiere
Little Jaffna by Lawrence Valin
French, Tamil | France | Asia Premiere
Nocturnes by Anirban Dutta, Anupama Srinivasan
English, Hindi, Bugun | India, USA | South Asia Premiere
Pooja, Sir by Deepak Rauniyar | Hindi, Maithili, Nepali | Nepal, Norway, USA | Asia Premiere
Rhythm of a Flower (Phool Ka Chand) by Amit Dutta
Hindi | India | World Premiere
Santosh by Sandhya Suri | Hindi | UK, Germany, France, India | South Asia Premiere
Shambhala by Min Bahadur Bham | Tibetan, Nepali | Nepal, France, Norway, Hong Kong, Turkey, Taiwan, USA | India Premiere
The Fable by Raam Reddy | English, Hindi | India, USA | Asia Premiere
Village Rockstars 2 by Rima Das Assamese | India | South Asia Premiere
FOCUS SOUTH ASIA
MAMI’s non-competitive section of feature and short films by South Asian and South Asian diaspora filmmakers spotlights talent from the region highlighting the wealth of narratives and styles.
The lineup, comprising 10 features and 13 non-features, spans multiple languages and reflects the festival’s commitment to diverse, thought-provoking cinema.
GALA PREMIERES
An out-of-competition section that presents a selection of Indian films with popular names in their ensemble cast. It showcases works from upcoming as well as established talent.
This specially curated out-of-competition comprises Despatch by Kanu Behl (starring Manoj Bajpayee, Shahana Goswami), Ghamasaan by Tigmanshu Dhulia (starring Arshad Warsi, Pratik Gandhi), Go Noni Go by Sonal Dabral (starring Dimple Kapadia, Manav Kaul), the anthology My Melbourne directed by Kabir Khan, Imtiaz Ali, Onir, Rima Das, and The Ancient (Puratawn) by Suman Ghosh (starring Sharmila Tagore, Rituparna Sengupta and Indraneil Sengupta).
Despatch by Kanu Behl
Ghamasaan by Tigmanshu Dhulia
Go Noni Go by Sonal Dabral
My Melbourne by Kabir Khan, Imtiaz Ali, Onir, Rima Das
The Ancient (Puratawn) by Suman Ghosh
WORLD CINEMA
The World Cinema section has been an integral part of the festival since its inception in 1997. This segment offers a panoramic view of the most ambitious and accomplished new films from around the globe.
This section also includes ‘Rendezvous with French Cinema’, showcasing some of the finest in contemporary French filmmaking, in collaboration with the Institut Français en Inde. Additionally, select films have been brought to Mumbai through the generous support of the British Council, the Consulate General of Ireland, the Embassy of Spain, the German Consulate General in Mumbai, the Istituto Italiano di Cultura in Mumbai, and the Royal Norwegian Consulate General. Some of the titles include A Different Man by Aaron Schimberg, A Traveler’s Needs (Yeohaengjaui Pilyo) by Hong Sangsoo, Christmas Eve in Miller’s Point by Tyler Taormina, Good One by India Donaldson, The Girl with the Needle (Pigen med nålen) by Magnus von Horn, and Wild Diamond (Diamant Brut) by Agathe Riedinger.
RESTORED CLASSICS
This section was first featured at the festival in 2012. The festival is deeply committed to honouring and preserving the cinematic legacy and this section showcases restored classic films from India and around the world. This curated collection features 4 films and offers audiences the opportunity to relish the magic of cinema’s past.
Check out details about the premieres at www.mumbaifilmfestival.com.
