I&B Minister Anurag Thakur Congratulates ’75 Creative Minds of Tomorrow’ at IFFI 2022 and Inaugurates Film Bazaar

PANAJI: The Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting on Monday honored 75 young creative talents taking part in various fields of cinema at a ceremony here on the second day of the 53rd International Film Festival of India (IFFI ).

The youngsters have been selected as part of ’75 Creative Minds of Tomorrow’, an initiative launched by IFFI last year to mark 75 years of India’s independence.

Nearly 1,000 registrations were received from across the country for the second edition.

“It was last year that we embarked on this journey, guided by PM Narendra Modi’s vision to engage, encourage and explore the potential of our young people by giving them a platform to ‘IFFY.’ This is the second edition of 75 Creative Minds of Tomorrow and we have already formed a community of 150 strong people bound together by their shared love for film, creativity and culture,” Thakur said at the congratulatory ceremony. .

The “75 Creative Minds of Tomorrow” were chosen based on their excellence in different areas of filmmaking, namely directing, acting, cinematography, editing, screenwriting, song reading, music composition, costumes and makeup, art design and animation, visual effects (VFX), augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR).

The grand jury for the initiative includes Prasoon Joshi, Resul Pookutty, R Balki, Rickey Kej, Mala Dey Banthia, Gautami Tadimalla, Ballu Saluja, Munjal Shroff, Narendra Rahurikar and Ravi K Chandran.

The young film professionals were discovered in 19 states including Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Delhi, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh , Jharkhand and West Bengal.

The largest number of selected participants come from Maharashtra, followed by Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.

The youngest candidates are 18 – Nitish Verma from Haryana and Toufique Mandal from Maharashtra. Both were selected for their talent in musical composition.

Minister I&B said the government was making efforts to create jobs and boost India’s creative economy.

“Our government is working to create jobs, stimulate the ‘creative economy’, mentor exceptional artists and encourage young people to achieve cinematic excellence.

“IFFI is your platform to network, explore, collaborate and be inspired along the way. Who knows, some of you will win National Film Awards, Grammys, Oscars and more?” he said.

Thakur also launched the ’53-Hour Challenge’ in which participants will be divided into groups of 15 and will be required to make a short film on their India@100 idea within 53 hours.

In his message, the minister urged young filmmakers to tell stories about the ambitious new India.

“My young friends, your selection also strengthens the culture of meritocracy in the country, and it is our effort to encourage, shape and mentor young minds from the most remote corners and provide them with unprecedented opportunities in the field of media. and entertainment,” he added.

The second day of IFFI also marked the start of the Film Bazaar, the largest film market in South Asia. Created and organized by the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC), the market event was opened by Minister I&B.

The five-day event was organized as a focal point for buyers and sellers of films from around the world. The focus is on discovering, supporting and showcasing South Asian content and talent in filmmaking, production and distribution.

The Film Bazaar will also facilitate the sale of global content in the South Asia region.

The 53rd edition of the IFFI will end on November 28.