America’s premier film festival representing the Indian subcontinent, New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF), kicks off its 17th anniversary season on Sunday, April 30th, with Alankita Shrivastava’s women’s empowerment film LIPSTICK UNDER MY BURKHA (watch trailer HERE), at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian (One Bowling Green, New York, NY 10004) in the Financial District. The film premiered at the Tokyo and Mumbai Film Festivals, where it won the Spirit of Asia Prize and the Oxfam Award for Best Film on Gender Equality. In January, India’s Central Board of Film Certification refused to certify the film because it claimed the story was too “lady-oriented,” so the film is currently banned in India. The red carpet reception for the New York premiere of the film will be followed by a gala benefit dinner, open to the general public. Tickets & tables are available HERE.

The festival’s centerpiece film is the New York premiere of Khushboo Ranka and Vinay Shukla’s critically-acclaimed documentary about India’s Aam Aadmi Party activist Arvind Kejriwal called AN INSIGNIFICANT MAN (watch trailer HERE). After its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September of 2016, the film has traveled to multiple festivals around the world, including London, Busan and Mumbai, and makes a stop at NYIFF in May.

The festival will close its programming on Sunday, May 7th, with the North American premiere of Milind Dhaimade’s YOU ARE MY SUNDAY (watch trailer HERE), an uplifting, slice-of-life comedy about five close friends who struggle to find a place to play soccer in Mumbai every Sunday. The closing night screening will take place at Mason Hall on the Baruch College campus (17 Lexington Avenue at 23rd Street), and it will also be preceded by a red carpet reception for media interviews and followed by the NYIFF 2017 Award Ceremony and gala closing night party.

NYIFF’s Sidebar Programming:

In addition to the New York, North American and World Premieres of 44 shorts, documentaries and feature films over a week-long period, NYIFF is proud to present the following sidebar festival programming:

Sibling Filmmakers: Deepa Mehta & Dilip Mehta present their respective New York Premieres of ANATOMY OF VIOLENCE and MOSTLY SUNNY on Saturday, May 6th. Both films’ world premieres took place at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2016.

Om Puri Tribute: A DEATH IN THE GUNJ, directed by Konkona Sen Sharma, pays tribute to the late Om Puri, one of India’s most versatile character actors who starred in more than 147 films during his illustrious career; he was awarded the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award of India in 1990. NYIFF Screening on Monday, May 1st.

Priyanka Produces: VENTILATOR and SARVAAN, produced by actor Priyanka Chopra – NYIFF Screenings on Thursday, May 4th.

Mobile Bollywood: One Minute Cell Phone Films (NYU Tisch Cinema Studies students)

SHOOT A SHORT FILM: Workshop by National Award-Winning Filmmaker Umesh Kulkarni – May 5th & 6th Industry Panels (May 4th) & Networking After-Parties all week long