'Ankhon Dekhi' sets the ball rolling for DIFF

The third season of Dharamshala International Film Festival (DIFF) began with a packed screening of Rajat Kapoor's much-acclaimed directorial "Ankhon Dekhi" here.

The warm domestic drama, starring Rajat himself with Sanjay Mishra, was screened Thursday evening.

It tells the tale of 55-year-old patriarch Bauji, who lives with his family in a cramped building in Old Delhi.

The hall in the Club House at McLeod Ganj was full, and the end of the movie was marked by loud applause by the audience, which included independent filmmakers, critics and movie aficionados.

Talking about the movie, which released in theatres earlier this year, Rajat said that the story idea struck to him four years ago. He believes that the "easy and light" nature of the film allows the audience to understand it in a better way.

Rajat's other directorial outings include "Mixed Doubles" (2005), "Mithya" (2007) and "Fatso" (2009) as well as the National Film Award winning "Raghu Romeo".

Meanwhile, movie enthusiasts at the four-day DIFF are set to be treated to a melange of cinema, including Mano Khalil's "The Beekeeper", Tenzin Tsetan Choklay's "Bringing Tibet Home", Hansal Mehta's "Citylights" and Geetu Mohandas' "Liar's Dice", which is India's official entry for the Oscar in the Best Foreign Film Category.

The list also includes Q's "Nabarun", Pakistani movie "Zinda Bhaag", Avinash Arun's Marathi drama "Killa", and Shabnam Sukhdev's "The Last Adieu".