Curtain falls on 25th IFFK at Palakkad

The curtain came down at the 25th International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) in Palakkad on Friday. The valedictory ceremony of the golden jubilee edition of IFFK took place at Priya Theatre in Palakkad. Veteran director, scriptwriter and producer Mr Adoor Gopalakrishnan was the chief guest of the ceremony.

The 20 days long film festival which was organized in four stints due to the pandemic protocol is concluded here after its journey from Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi and Thalassery.

The Mosotho film "This Is Not a Burial, It's a Resurrection" directed by Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese won the Golden Crow Pheasant for the best film of this season.

The Rajatha Chakoram (Silver Crow Pheasant) for best director went to Bahman Tavoosi, who directed the Bolivian film 'The Name of the Flowers'. Tavoosi addressed the audience through a virtual video message after the announcement.

The Rajatha Chakoram (Silver Crow Pheasant) for Best Debut Director went to Argentine director Alejandro Telemaco Tarraf for the film "Piedra Sola".

Mr Lijo Jose Pellisery's movie "Churuli" won the audience poll award at the festival consecutively for the second time. The movie also won a special jury mention in the competition category.

"Android Kunjappan 5.25" directed by Ratheesh Balakrishnan Poduval has bagged the prestigious and international FIPRESCI award for the best Malayalam movie. The FIPRESCI award for the best film in competition was won by the Azerbaijani movie "In Between Dying" directed by Hilal Baydarov.

Marathi movie "Sthalpuran: Chronicles of Space" directed by Akshay Indiker won the Network for Promotion of Asian Cinema (NETPAC) award for the best Asian film in the competition category. It also won the K.R. Mohanan Endowment Award for Best Debut Director from India, instituted by the Federation of Film Societies of India. The Malayalam movie selected by the jury of NETPAC as the best film is "Musical Chair" directed by Vipin Atlee.

The ceremony also witnessed a special mention by the International jury of the film festival which was awarded to Late Mary Twala Mhlongo for her acting in the film "This Is Not a Burial, It's a Resurrection."

All the awards were presented by the honorable guests and presiding men to the awardees and their representatives.