Bollywood stars flock to London Film Festival

By Steven Baker

This week sees the opening of the Tongues on Fire 12^th London Asian Film Festival (5-14 March 2010), scheduled to be attended by a host of leading Bollywood figures including Abhishek Bachchan,
Aishwarya Rai, Jaya Bachchan, Soha Ali Khan and Sharmila Tagore. A
BAFTA interview with Abhishek Bachchan opens the festival on Friday,
celebrating the cinematic achievements of one of Bollywood's current
biggest names. The event will be followed by an Opening Gala
Dinner where Jaya Bachchan, the first lady of Bollywood, will be
presented with "A Lifetime Achievement Award" for her contribution to
the Indian film industry. Abhishek, who has been nominated for Filmfare awards for his roles in Bunty aur Bably, Guru and Dostana,
is scheduled to deliver an Actor’s Masterclass, giving film
practitioners and cinema lovers the opportunity to interact with their
idol and learn what makes him and the characters he plays so successful.

The festival will see some of Bollywood’s biggest hits of the last few years screened in London’s West End, including Tarun Mansukhani’s Dostana, Mani Ratnam’s Guru and Shimit Amin’s Chak De! India. Tongues on Fire also celebrates other South Asian cinemas, as well British Indian films such as the Om Puri starrer Life Goes On,
which has its premiere screening at the closing night event with actors
Sharmila Tagore and Soha Ali Khan. Pioneer of middle cinema Shyam
Benegal, whose Well Done Abba is being shown, will be giving a
film direction workshop and taking part in a BAFTA interview. Festival
patron, the writer, actress and comedian Meera Syal best known in India
for The Kumars at No. 42 and Jhoom Barabar Jhoom, says,
“I have been very proud to be associated with Tongues on Fire over the
years – both as an excited viewer, and also as a participant, and am
honoured to be the Patron of the Festival.”

For details of festival events www.tonguesonfire.com