Bengal Association commences 2nd International Short Film & Documentary Festival

Bengal Association, in collaboration with the South Asian Short Film Festival, is happy to announce the commencement of the second edition of its International Short Film and Documentary Festival. The three-day long festival, aimed at promoting greater understanding and viewership of documentaries as well as short films, will be organised from December 13 to December 15, 2024, at Muktadhara Auditorium, Banga Sanskriti Bhawan, Gole Market, New Delhi.

Veteran actor Dhritiman Chatterjee, who featured in many films by Satyajit Ray and Mrinal Sen, will be the Chief Guest at the festival. A documentary on his life and works will be an added attraction for the cine-lovers in the capital.

The festival will treat the audience to a total of 25 award-winning films from across the globe, some in Indian languages and the rest from countries like the USA, the UK, Iran, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan. “The idea is to open up the vistas for the cine-goers in Delhi, who seldom have the chance to view short films and documentaries at one place free of any fees,” said Prodip Ganguly, Secretary of the Bengal Association.

Besides the screening of films, there will be a wide array of panel discussions and talks on different aspects of filmmaking, ideas and movements in the international arena of cinema, interactions with the actors and directors and music. Film scholars, experts and National Award-winning documentary filmmakers will participate in the discussions. “We want to showcase that a film festival is not just about viewing films but also about knowing the process of filmmaking, the ideas that encourage creativity and the technicalities involved in the long journey,” reminded Rahul Mukherjee, the chief coordinator of the International Short Film and Documentary Festival.

It’s expected that hundreds of cine-lovers of Delhi including the students of film studies will attend the three-day long festival. Along with the film festival, a specially curated ‘Street Food Festival’ will showcase gastronomical delights from Bengal.