Mumbai: Bollywood actress Swara Bhaskar has joined the 44th Cairo International Film Festival's international competition jury. The event is currently underway at Egypt's famous Opera House.
Swara said she is grateful and honoured to be a jury member at the "illustrious festival". The Cario film festival has been a platform for showcasing global cinema for many decades. "It is an opportunity to watch some of the best cinema from the region and the world this year and that's such a treat! I'm absolutely stoked," she added.
This year, the festival opened with Steven Spielberg's 'The Fabelmans' on November 13.
Festival director Amir Ramses said CIFF is proud to welcome Swara Bhasker, a noted and versatile actress from India who works across mainstream and independent cinema, as a member of the CIFF as International Competition Jury. He also described Swara as a "vocal activist who draws attention to causes that need highlighting as a public speaker and columnist."
She is a vocal critic of CAA and participated in protests. "CIFF is truly delighted that she brings such a varied experience and sensitivity to judging the films in the main competition of our forthcoming 44th edition," he added.
The popular and oldest film festival in the Middle East is organised by the Egyptian Ministry of Culture. It has showcased many iconic international films that later won Oscars and Golden Globes. The competition section contains 14 titles including five world premieres.
Other than Swara, the jury consists of Egyptian cinematographer Nancy Abdelfattah, Egyptian composer Rageh Daoud, Italian actor Stefania Casini, Mexican filmmaker Joaquin Del Paso and Moroccan actor Samir Guesmi. The jury is presided over by Japanese filmmaker Naomi Kawase.