Dharamshala International Film Festival's initiative to stream alumni films free ends

The Dharamshala International Film Festival (DIFF)'s initiative to bring films from its previous editions online and enable audiences to watch them at home ended yesterday. The festival's Viewing Room, co-founded by filmmakers Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam, has been sharing a specially curated selection of films from its previous editions since 31 March.

Sonam had stated on the festival website, "Here at DIFF, we are trying to keep our spirits afloat by turning once again to cinema to inspire and encourage us. The deep humanism and artistic insights that inform the best of cinema are as relevant in the age of coronavirus as they have always been.”

The selection of films was updated every two weeks and cinephiles had the chance to watch acclaimed festival films from across the world.

Some of the Indian films that were available for viewing included Bebaak, Miss Lovely and Mukti Bhawan (Hindi), Chauthi Koot (Punjabi), Court (Marathi), Ee Ma Yau (Malayalam) and Maacher Jhol (Bengali).

The last selection of films was added on 24 June and the initiative ended yesterday.  The films were made available for free viewing during the time period.