Cinema, art and music converged at the second edition of the Himachal International Film and Art Festival (HIFAF) held from 13 to 15 June at the 21-acre Devlok Himachal Swarg by Beas, a cultural theme park in Manali. “We decided to incorporate everything that is involved in making a film, such as textures, voiceovers, background music and writing. That was the idea behind the curation of the festival,” said Anurag Vashisht, co-founder, HIFAF.
The magic of cinema: A screening in progress at the Himachal International Film and Art Festival 2025 (Courtesy HFAF)
The inauguration was attended by, among others, State Secretary of Tourism & Civil Aviation, Vivek Bhatia; film director, producer and screenwriter Ketan Mehta, his wife, actor and producer Deepa Sahi, and actor, director and author Deepti Naval. “To watch films in the mountains in itself is a beautiful thing. When I was a child, I would watch films and paint – with the snow falling outside in my village,” said Laapataa Ladies actor Pratibha Ranta, who is from Shimla.
“Especially interesting were the stimulating panel discussions under a peepal tree.” (Courtesy HFAF)
Throughout the course of the three-day festival engaging films were screened followed by Q&A sessions with the filmmakers. Of the five feature-length documentary films that were shown, three focused on Himalayan regions like Bhutan (Agent of Happiness), Nepal (No Winter Holidays) and Arunachal Pradesh (Nocturnes). “We decided to choose more films about the Himalayas. We also wanted this to be an emotional experience for people. So, these are all true stories,” said Samarth Mahajan, co-curator, documentaries. The other two documentaries, A Fly on the Wall by Shonali Bose and The World is My Family by Anand Patwardhan, were both films with universal appeal.
Similar criteria were used to curate the selection of short films. Pratik Rajen Kothari, curator, short films, explained that the idea was to select works that were compelling to watch and had some connection with the mountains. That was how films like Sadak and Shera were included in the lineup. Another short film, Lovely and Tip Top, is about a lingerie seller who has been summoned by the Ministry of Belonging to prove that she indeed belongs. “The film was shot in Landour during the pandemic. I used many of the local stores in the film, and it has many non-actors from the neighbourhood also,” said director Yuki Ellias.
Amar Colony shot entirely in the director Siddharth Chauhan’s hometown, Shimla, is about three neighbours living in a dilapidated but beautiful wooden building. “All of them are trying to deal with their own loneliness and fulfil their desires,” he said.
Dibakar Das Roy, director of the recently-released Dilli Dark, a bleak comedy about a black man living in Delhi said he took six years to make the feature film. His protagonist is a drug dealer who wants a job. “The struggle is where the story is,” said Roy.
Several short films, animation films and docu-shorts like 7 Star Dinosor Entertainment, Chashma and Thursday Special were part of the festival. Especially interesting were the stimulating panel discussions under a peepal tree. The Lives we Borrow, had actor, music composer, singer and set designer Raghubir Yadav, actor Adil Hussain, film director Sameer Udesh Sharma, actor Saqib Ayub, and actor and writer Bhumika Dube in conversation with filmmaker Vidar Joshi about the process of acting.
Bhumika Dube in and as Kela (Courtesy HFAF)
Kela, an engrossing play written, directed and performed by Dube, is about the lifelong journey of a woman called Kela. “The story talks about loss, resilience and how we have disregarded nature,” she said after the 75-minute performance.
The music lineup included independent artists like Dream Note, Karan Verma, Arjun Amori, Shubhank Sharma, Aman Sharma, Salman Elahi, Vismay Patel and Jeevana. The opening evening concluded with a performance by local band Buland Himalay, who sang some melodious Himachali songs. “Our songs talk about the stories, culture and traditions of Himachal. One of our songs is about Mandi, our hometown. Another is about societal pressure that a child faces. Then, there are songs about love, greed and climate change,” said Jatin Sharma, the lead vocalist.
On the evening of day two, Indore band Osho Jain’s lively songs, one of which had cheeky lyrics like “India top hai corruption mein”, got the audience singing and grooving along. Local artist Bharat Chauhan’s romantic music with a psychedelic touch was also much appreciated.
A participant at the mud wall workshop (Courtesy HFAF)
Additionally, the festival hosted technical workshops including one in acting, movement and voice by Bipasha Biswas and Maniny Chakrabarty and another on costume design by Rushi Sharma and Manoshi Nath. Paarli Dhara conducted a mud wall workshop while the artist’s colony of Andretta organized a pottery workshop. The venue had little shops that displayed local handicrafts and stalls selling various snacks and food items. “We have also started a village outreach programme in Jana village, where we held a filmmaking workshop at a government school. A local girl wrote a story, and the children shot the film which was then screened there,” said Raja Singh Malhotra, co-founder, HIFAF.
Interestingly, the festival has opted to have different venues each year. Last year, it was held at Mandi and coming editions might be in Chamba or Simla.
Wherever it is held, if this edition is anything to go by, HIFAF will continue to be a beautiful mountain festival with a heart.
A freelance writer based in New Delhi, Neha Kirpal writes primarily on books, music, films, theatre and travel.
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