Aamir Khan To Head To Melbourne For IFFM As They Celebrate 25 Years Of Lagaan With A Special Curtain Raiser

The special event will be held on 9 July in Melbourne, where actor and producer Aamir Khan will attend a special screening of the landmark film, officially flagging off this year's festival celebrations at the iconic ACMI cinema . Widely regarded as one of the defining films of Indian cinema, Lagaan was only the second Indian film to receive an Academy Award nomination in the Best Foreign Language Film category and continues to enjoy a lasting legacy with audiences across the world.

Over the years, the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne has grown into one of the world's leading platforms for Indian cinema. Backed by the Government of Victoria, the festival has welcomed some of the biggest names from the Indian film industry, including Shah Rukh Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, A.R. Rahman, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Rani Mukerji, Ram Charan, Vijay Sethupathi, Vicky Kaushal, Vijay Varma and Keerthy Suresh, along with acclaimed filmmakers such as Rajkumar Hirani, Shoojit Sircar, Anjali Menon, Ashwini Iyer Tiwari, Zoya Akhtar, Rima Das, Onir and Kabir Khan.

Speaking about this year's festival, Festival Director Mitu Bhowmick Lange said, "The Indian Film Festival of Melbourne has always celebrated stories that have made a lasting impact on audiences, and there could not have been a better way to begin our 17th edition than by celebrating 25 years of Lagaan. The film is a milestone in Indian cinema and continues to inspire generations of filmmakers and audiences around the world. We are delighted to welcome Aamir Khan to Melbourne for this special celebration and look forward to presenting another memorable edition of the festival that brings together the very best of Indian cinema."

The 17th edition of the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne will once again bring together celebrated filmmakers, actors, industry professionals and cinema lovers from across the world through an extensive programme of film screenings, premieres, conversations, masterclasses and cultural events.