IFFM: Indian film festival held virtually announced the winners of its 12th edition

The Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM), one of the largest film festivals in Australia, announces its grand winners for its 12th edition. The edition which is being held virtually has an interesting line-up of Indian features and short films to represent its festival theme 'Diversity through Cinema'.

Presented by the Government of Victoria in Melbourne, the festival was attended by various dignitaries of Australia including the honourable Linda Dessau AC, Governor of Victoria and by eminent Indian artists like Anurag Kashyap, Shoojit Sircar, Thiagarajan Kumararaja, Sriram Raghavan. The jury members including Richa Chadha, Guneet Monga, Onir, Australian filmmaker Geoffrey Wright, and Oscar-nominated editor Jill Bilcock, were also present.

IFFM honoured Pankaj Tripathi with the Prestigious Diversity in Cinema Award presented by LaTrobe University. Suriya-starrer Tamil film Soorarai Pottru won two awards - the Best Feature Film and Best Actor Award. On winning the Best Actor in a feature film for Sorrarai Pottru, Suriya said that he couldn't have asked for more. "This film is very special. This is the first award I’m getting for this film. Thanks to all the fans who have given us so much love. In my career, I felt bored with what I was doing after having worked for 20 years. So thanks to my director Sudha. This film was her 10 years dream and she worked four years writing it. The character of Maara will not be anything without her. I couldn’t ask for more," he said in a statement.

Vidya Balan won the Best Actress for her performance in the film Sherni that was shot during the pandemic. Balan thanked the makers of the film to pull all strings to make it during uncertain times. Mirzapur 2 won the Best Series Award. Ace filmmaker Anurag Basu was awarded the Best Director trophy for the feature film Ludo.

Speaking about the winners, the festival’s director Mitu Bhowmick Lange said in a statement: “We congratulate all the winners. It is time to present the diverse sensibilities through narratives that are ground-breaking and all the winners of the IFFM awards symbolize this fervour of thought.”

A complete list of winners:

Best Feature Film - Soorarai Pottru

Best Performance Male (Feature) - Suriya Sivakumar (Soorarai Pottru)

Best Performance Female (Feature) - Vidya Balan (Sherni) & Honourable mention to Nimisha Sajayan (The Great Indian Kitchen)

Best Director - Anurag Basu (Ludo) & Honorary Mention Prithvi Konanur (Pinki Elli?)

Best Series - Mirzapur Season 2

Best Actress in a Series - Samantha Akkineni (The Family Man 2)

Best Actor in a Series - Manoj Bajpayee (The Family Man 2)

Equality in Cinema (Short Film) - Sheer Qorma

Equality in Cinema Award (Feature Film) - The Great Indian Kitchen

Best Indie Film - Fire in the Mountains

Diversity in Cinema Award - Pankaj Tripathi

Disruptor Award - Sanal Kumar Sasidharan

Best Documentary Film – Shut Up Sona