Kolkata Hosts First International Children's Film Festival From Dec. 21

The first edition of the Kolkata International Children's Film Festival will kick off from Dec. 21, 2011. Organized by the West Bengal government, the festival will be inaugurated by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

The week-long children's film festival will showcase classics and contemporary films from India and 14 other countries from around the world. More than 160 movies, including short films, will be screened in the city at Nandan, Sisir Mancha, Star theatre, Rabindra Okakura Bhavan and SRFTI auditorium in Kolkata.

Amol Gupte's critically acclaimed 'Stanley Ka Dabba' will be the inaugural film. Shyam Benegal's 1975 classic 'Charandas Chor,' Santosh Sivan's 'Malli' (1998), Nila Madhab Panda's award-winning 'I am Kalam,' Madhu Bose's 'Alibaba,' Satyajit Ray's Bengali classic 'Goopi Gayen Bagha Bayen' and the latest Bengali hit 'Gosain Baganer Bhoot' will be among the notable works to be screened.

As a tribute to Tapan Sinha, six of his works, including 'Anokha Moti,' 'Sabuj Dwiper Raja,' 'Safed Hati' and 'Kabuliwala,' will be shown at the festival.

International classic fare includes Russian director Boris Rytsarev 'Alladin's Magic Lamp,' Vladimir Bychkov's animation film 'The Little Mermaid,' Michael Curtiz's 'The Adventures of Robin Hood' and James Hill's 'Born Free.' Besides Laurel and Hardy films, Charlie Chaplin's 'The Kid' and 'Gold Rush' will add to the comic quotient of the children carnival. A selection of short films made by children from West Bengal, several European countries and Czech Republic will also be screened as a special attraction.

The film festival will be a part of the annual Kishore Utsav, which will be held from December 22–30 at Mohar Kunj to celebrate childhood and innocence.