Jio Mami Festival: Sarvnik Kaur's Against the Tide wins Golden Gateway Award, Kanu Behl’s Agra gets special jury award

Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival closed with a grand ceremony at the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre (NMACC). One of the biggest film festivals in South Asia, Jio MAMI, this year has over 300 films in 70 languages from 70 different countries. Of these, a record number of 70 films are by female filmmakers. The festival also had 40 world premieres, 45 Asian premieres, and over 70 South Asian premieres. The festival is spread across 8 venues and 20 screens. While the closing ceremony took place on November 3, 2023, the festival will continue to screen some of the most popular titles on November 4th and 5th. The closing ceremony was hosted by the incredibly talented actor Kalki Koechlin and attended by top-of-the-line guests from the Indian and international film fraternities. The closing-night ceremony honored the filmmakers in the various competition categories. The South Asia Competition awards were presented by the jury, which included Head of Jury Mira Nair, Australian writer and filmmaker David Michod, Filipino filmmaker and actor Isabel Sandoval, and Edouard Waintrop, French Film Critic and Festival Director. The jury awarded the Golden Gateway award to Against the Tide by Sarvnik Kaur, the Silver Gateway award went to Bahadur - The Brave by Diwa Shah and the Special Jury Award went to Agra by Kanu Behl. The Film Critics Guild Gender Sensitivity Award was announced next for a film that challenges gender stereotypes and norms. It was given by the jury, which included film critic Aditya Shrikrishna and RJ Stutee Ghosh. The winner in this category was Barir Naam Shahana (A House Named Shahana) by Leesa Gazi. The Rashid Irani Young Critics Lab is a special programme created by Jio MAMI to nurture young writers within the realm of cinema. The Rashid Irani Young Critics’ Choice Award was presented by Christian Jeune, Director of the Film Department, Deputy General Delegate. Festival de Cannes.The winner in this category was Kayo Kayo Colour? (Which Colour?) by Shahrukhkhan Chavada Next at the event was the NETPAC award, given to a film from the main South Asia Competition section. Presenters included jury members Dr. Gulnara Abikeyeva, a film critic, researcher, and head of jury, along with writer and editor Latika Padgaonkar and Festival Director of the Sydney Film Festival Nashen Moodley. They presented the award to Rimdogittanga (Rapture) by Dominic Sangma. This year at the festival, the global media company Civic Studios joined hands with Jio MAMI to create a new category of award, the Light Camera Impact Award. This award recognised two non-feature films focusing on subjects of climate, sexuality, and caste. Through these awards, the intent is to spotlight engaging short films that spark conversation on socially relevant topics. The awards were presented by Civic Studios founder Anushka Shah and filmmaker Kiran Rao. The two winners were Blackhole by Pradyumna Patil and Praan Pratishthana (Consecration) by Pankaj Sonawane. Flowering Man by Soumyajit Ghosh Dastidar got a special mention in this category.

Next, Kalki introduced the Jio MAMI Select—Filmed on iPhone. a new initiative where a talented group of emerging filmmakers are given the opportunity to reimagine traditional cinematic conventions by creating high-quality short films, shot on the iPhone 15 Pro Max and edited on the MacBook Pro. Jio MAMI and Apple have handpicked five visionary filmmakers—Archana Atul Phadke, Faraz Ali, Prateek Vats, Saurav Rai, and Saumyananda Sahi—representing the newest wave of Indian cinema. They will be mentored and guided by some of the industry’s brightest minds, like Vishal Bhardwaj, known for many award-winning films and his iPhone short ‘Fursat’; Vikramaditya Motwane, a creative genius in his own right; and the master of stylish story-telling, Rohan Sippy. One of the most sought-after awards of the night was the IMDb Audience Choice Award for the most popular film at the festival, as chosen by the festival attendees. IMDb India head Yaminie Patodia and Festival Director Jio MAMI, Anupama Chopra presented the award to The Monk and the Gun by Pawo Choyning Dorji. The closing ceremony was followed by the screening of Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla. One of the most anticipated films at the festival, it is based on Priscilla Presley’s 1985 biography, Elvis and Me, written with support from Sandra Harmon. It stars Cailee Spaeny, Jacob Elordi, and Dagmara Dominczyk and is produced by Sofia Cappola, Lorenzo Mieli, and Youree Henley.