The word 'Filmi' is Hindi slang, referring to anything associated with the Indian motion picture industry. Filmi Toronto’s South Asian Film Festival was created to promote South Asian independent films from around the world, and to provide a forum for South Asian artists to showcase their cinematic endeavors to a culturally diverse audience.
The first South Asian Film Festival debuted on September 30, 2000, at the Harbourfront Centre in Toronto, Ontario. The Filmi launch showcase featured Bugaboo, a Silicon Valley film by Sujit Saraf, a documentary by Tony Sehgal entitled No Laughing Matter, and East is East, by Damian O'Donnell.
By 2001, Filmi had grown exponentially - both programming, and in its number of supporters. The second annual festival was a two-day free event, showcasing six features and eight short films and attracting over 2,500 theatergoers. Once again, the Harbourfront Centre hosted the event, generating interest among local and international media and drawing several over-capacity crowds. Among the feature presentations were Just a Little Red Dot, directed by Mitra Sen, Hyderabad Blues by Nagesh Kukunoor, and the shocking true story Bawandar (Sandstorm), directed by Jagmohan Mundrah. Filmi has proven its track record to promote films, with such titles as ‘Slumdog Millionaire’, ‘The Pool’, ‘Harold and Kumar’, ‘Scorpion King 2’ and most recently ‘West is West’. In 2012 we will have our special guest Mumbai Film actor, Vipin Sharma as Filmi’s Special guest artist.
In 13 years, Filmi,has the support of many of its generous sponsors, continues to have the opportunity to showcase and premiere many Canadian films by South Asian filmmakers as well as South Asian film from around the world. Filmi has become the festival where South Asian films Premiere. Over the years, festival supporters have included in the past Rogers, Tonya Lee Williams, founder of the Reel World Film Festival, Alliance Atlantis, , India Journal, Weekly Voice ,Bollywood Buzz Where Magazine, Moosehead Beer, Brownman Clothing, Nandos Chicken, Now Magazine, India Journal, Weekly Voice and South Asian Newsweek, ACTRA and the Asian Television Network.
Making a Movement
The Filmi South Asian Film Festival was created 13 years ago in response to the absence of South Asian representation in the North American Film industry. Today it has grown to be the largest festival of its kind in North America, and aspires to become the largest outside India.
Filmi hit the festival circuit during the summer of 2000, at the Harbourfront Centre in Toronto, earning accolades from the worldwide film community and audiences alike. Continuing with its success, Filmi is now an annual event committed to cultivating a new audience for films produced outside of India and the Bollywood system.
The vision of the Filmi South Asian Film Festival is to promote, discover, introduce and celebrate cinematic endeavours by talented South Asian filmmakers, and highlight works with South Asian themes that can be brought to a mainstream audience. As such, we applaud and encourage all those who have supported the movement since its inception; there are many more great things to come.
Filmi South Asian Film Festival is currently celebrating its 13th year with a 4-day festival in Toronto with all screenings at the Carlton Cinema and parties at 30 Bar & Lounge and Johnny Jackson.
StarBuzz, Toronto-
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