MUMBAI, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The 17th Mumbai International Film Festival began on Sunday evening that will screen around 400 films including 102 in the competition category and the rest in the non-competition category.
The seven-day film festival for documentary, short fiction and animation films was launched in the online and offline mode, and online viewing of the movies is free for all registered audience, India's state-owned Press Information Bureau said in a statement.
This is the first time that the film festival is going online as it has introduced its hybrid mode, through which films in the competition and Prism section can be viewed off-location on individual computers by the delegates from around the world.
The film festival, which commenced with India's Manipuri documentary film -- 'Meiram -- The Fireline (33 mins)', Animation film from France, 'Castaway' (6 mins), and short fiction film from Japan Shabu-Shabu Spirit (10 mins), will feature a special package of 11 films from Bangladesh, in commemoration of its 50 years of independence, including the critically acclaimed film Hasina -- A Daughter's Tale.
At the inauguration event, documentary filmmaker Sanjit Narwekar was honored with "Dr. V Shantaram Lifetime Achievement Award" for his contribution to films through his writings, especially on film history and the documentary film movement.
Narwekar has written and edited more than 20 books on cinema. ■