Perth [Australia], April 18 (ANI): The Perth edition of the National Indian Film Festival of Australia (NIFFA) opened on Friday, April 17, with a sold-out red carpet gala at Reading Cinemas Belmont, to mark a strong start for the event in Western Australia.

The festival was backed by several government, civic and cultural bodies, including the City of Perth, Department of Creative Industries, Murdoch University, WA Museum, State Library of Western Australia, the Consulate of India in Perth and the Indian Society of Western Australia.

NIFFA has become one of the biggest celebrations of Indian cinema outside India. This year, the festival is being held across more than 13 cities and features 32 films in 15 Indian languages. All selected films are screening as Australian, International or World Premieres.

The Perth lineup includes BOONG, the first Indian film to win a BAFTA, ASSI as part of a special celebration of filmmaker Anubhav Sinha, along with Tanvi The Great, Manthan and several industry and inclusion events.

A major highlight of the Perth chapter was the launch of Punjab Focus and the official opening of PTC ANZ. The initiative was led by Dr Parwinder Kaur MLC.

During the event, PTC CEO Raji M Shinde said the move would help take Punjabi stories to a wider global audience. He also confirmed plans for Punjabi co-production investment between India and Australia, with Western Australia being considered as a production base.

Festival Director Anupam Sharma said the Perth edition showed that Perth and Western Australia are an important part of the national and international conversation around Indian cinema.

Dr Parwinder Kaur also said NIFFA is helping turn 'shared stories into shared success' through cultural and screen collaboration between Western Australia and India. (ANI)