Gully Boy, Andhadhun and Super Deluxe have bagged top nominations at the annual Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM) awards. The jury for the year includes Academy award-winning editor Jilly Bilcock, filmmaker and screenwriter Fred Schepisi, actor Victoria Hill and others. The awards ceremony will be held on August 8 at the Palais Theatre in Melbourne, Australia.
Sriram Raghavan’s 2018 black comedy Andhadhun has been nominated in four categories, including Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor (Ayushmann Khurrana) and Best Actress (Tabu). The same holds true for Zoya Akhtar’s rap musical Gully Boy, starring Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt. Thiagarajan Kumararaja’s sophomore film Super Deluxe has landed two nominations, for Best Film and Best Director. Sharat Katariya’s Sui Dhaaga and Amit Sharma’s Badhaai Ho are also in contention for Best Film.
In the independent space, Widow of Silence, Bulbul Can Sing, The Gold-Laden Sheep & the Scared Mountain, Namdev Bhau, Bhonsle, Chuskit and Bhoga Khirkee have been nominated for ‘Best Indie Film’. Bulbul Can Sing director Rima Das, whose maiden directorial Village Rockstars India’s entry to the 91st Oscars, has also been nominated for Best Director. She is joined by Abhishek Chaubey for Sonchiriya, Praveen Morchhale for Widow of Silence and Jhanu Barua for Bhoga Khirkee.
The theme for this year’s festival is 'Courage'. A total of 58 films from India will be screened in 21 languages. Actor Shah Rukh Khan has been invited as the chief guest and will be joined by Premier of Victoria Daniel Andrews.