IFFLA To Spotlight Award-Winning Films And California Filmmakers

Photo: IFFLA Will Showcase Indian American and California filmmakers

India-West News Desk

LOS ANGELES, CA – The Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA) has announced the film and events lineup for its 24th edition which will take place April 23 to 26.

Recognized as a leading platform for South Asian cinema in the U.S., IFFLA celebrates the region’s filmmaking while spotlighting new voices and helping artists take important next steps in their careers by connecting them with key industry professionals.

The festival opens with Mahesh Narayanan’s Malayalam thriller ‘Patriot’, bringing together the legendary actors Mohanlal and Mammootty on screen again after 18 years. The festival will close with Anusha Rizvi’s ‘The Great Shamsuddin Family’, a sharp social satire set in Delhi and her long-awaited follow-up to ‘Peepli Live’.

This year, IFFLA will feature 27 films, including seven narrative features, two documentary features, and 18 short films. Countries represented include India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Japan, France, the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, Saudi Arabia, and the United States.

Anu Rangachar, IFFLA’s Artistic Director, said, “Apart from our impressive galas, the program travels across South Asia, from Bangladesh’s meditative ‘Sand City’ to Pakistan’s emerging new wave with the haunting ‘Ghost School’ and the visually arresting ‘Lali’. Alongside Indian stories like ‘Shape of Momo’ and Venice-winner ‘Songs of Forgotten Trees’, this year’s lineup reflects a remarkable surge of women filmmakers across the subcontinent and the diasporas, something we are very proud to champion. Two intimate diaspora documentaries, Karla Murthy’s ‘The Gas Station Attendant’, and Ben Rekhi and Swetlana’s ‘Breaking the Code’, round out the selection with deeply personal tributes to their fathers.”

The festival’s IFFLA Industry Days returns expanded, featuring panels, masterclasses, screenings, and pitch finalists, with details to be announced soon. The forum offers South Asian film and TV creatives opportunities to build connections with industry leaders and compete for a $10,000 Pitch Competition Development Grant. It also includes IFFLA Connect, a program linking standout projects from South Asia and its diasporas with key industry professionals across financing, production, casting, and more.

Tribeny Rai’s ‘Shape of Momo’, which has been making waves globally, will have its North American premiere at IFFLA. The film follows a young woman who, after quitting her job in Delhi, returns to her ancestral home in a remote Himalayan village, where she confronts the traditional expectations shaping the lives of women around her.

Also making its North American premiere is the darkly comic ‘Lali’, directed by Sarmad Khoosat, one of Pakistan’s most distinctive voices. The film tells the story of a newlywed couple caught between love and destiny, offering a quietly unsettling portrait of a family burdened by unhealed wounds.

Another notable debut is Anuparna Roy’s ‘Songs of Forgotten Trees’, which follows two young migrant women who form an unlikely bond while trying to survive Mumbai’s urban sprawl. The film earned Roy the Best Director award at the Venice Film Festival.

Karla Murthy’s documentary ‘The Gas Station Attendant’ offers an intimate portrait of an immigrant father’s journey from India to life in America, using archival footage and recorded phone conversations during his night shifts. The film won Best Documentary at the Nashville Film Festival.

Making its world premiere in a special presentation, Ben Rekhi and Swetlana’s ‘Breaking the Code’ traces a father’s journey from a modest upbringing in newly independent India to becoming a tech pioneer in Silicon Valley, telling a story of migration, sacrifice, and love.

The short film program, featuring works by 13 female directors, includes the world premiere of Nihaarika Negi’s ‘Tenfa’, produced by Storiculture, known for ‘Humans in the Loop’ (IFFLA 2025). Also premiering is Fatima Liaqat’s ‘Plain Folks’, a comedy horror story about a Pakistani freshman in Utah whose dream college party turns into a nightmare. Making its North American premiere, ‘Hidden Sun’ by Shuchi Talati is a stirring drama about a couple whose relationship is rekindled after encountering a flamenco dancer.

Short films making their Los Angeles premieres after success at major festivals include the Queer Palm winner at Cannes Critics’ Week ‘Bleat!’ by Ananth Subramaniam, a surreal comedy about a Malaysian Tamil couple whose male goat becomes pregnant; the Cannes Special Mention winner ‘Ali’ by Adnan Al Rajeev, about a young Bangladeshi singer forced to hide his true voice; and ‘O’Sey Balamma’ by Raman Nimmala, fresh from Sundance, which explores the bond between a matriarch and her housekeeper.

The festival also highlights California-based filmmakers, including the world premieres of ‘Harvest Party At Camp Two’ by Rajan Gill and Reaa Pur, a documentary on Punjabi farmworkers in 1980s small-town America; ‘Peanut’ by Sheila Sawhny, a story about second chances; Urvashi Pathania’s ‘Skin’, a surreal horror tale on toxic beauty standards; ‘Katti’ by Kanishka Aggarwal, about a young girl confronting gender bias; and the North American premiere of Radha Mehta’s ‘Sūnna’, a mother-daughter story set in the world of classical Indian music.

IFFLA 2026 is supported in part by the Joy of Sharing Foundation, Tarsadia Foundation, the Los Angeles County Department of Arts and Culture, the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, and additional sponsors.

For information, passes, and tickets, visit www.indianfilmfestival.org.