Enthusiastic crowds, serious film lovers, and acclaimed directors flocked to various venues of the International Film Festival of Kerala on the fourth day. The day opened with special screenings of films like 'Hanging Gardens' by Iraqi director Ahmed Yassin Aldaradji, Malayalam film 'Neelamudi' by Sarathkumar, Manipur movie 'Joseph's Son,' among others. The day was marked by special screenings of films in the Homage category, showcasing Malayalam films like 'Ramji Rao Speaking,' 'Perumazhakkalam,' 'Vidheyan,' and the French film 'Adieu Philippine,' drawing good crowds.
Many expressed happiness at seeing films by their favourite directors and actors on the big screen. Meanwhile, the 20th edition of the annual Aravindan Memorial Lecture at IFFK was held at the Nila Theatre. The Aravindan commemorative lecture, moderated by veteran filmmaker Shaji N Karun, was delivered by Hindi filmmaker and Chairman of K R Narayanan National Institute of Visual Science and Arts, Saeed Akhtar Mirza.
Saeed recalled how Aravindan's films were immersed in memory and how he was a filmmaker who made his own rules. A Q&A session by filmmakers Satish Babusenan and Santhosh Babusenan of 'Anand Monalisa Waits for Death' was also held. An open forum on the topic 'Female gaze and Body Politics in Cinema,' moderated by Sangeeta Chenampulli, was also conducted.
Films including 'Agra' by Kanu Behl and 'Anatomy of a Fall' by Justine Triet were among the crowd favourites on the fourth day, which concluded with a midnight screening of 'The Exorcist.'
