Bullet Proof Anand, starring Sanjay Mishra, Jaaved Jaaferi, to be premiered at Indian Film Festival of Melbourne

The short film Bullet Proof Anand, starring Sanjay Mishra, Jaaved Jaaferi and Anshuman Jha, is set to have its world premiere at the 12th Indian Film Festival Of Melbourne.

The festival will be held from 12 to 21 August in cinema halls and from 15 to 30 August online. This year's edition will see Richa Chadha and Onir on the jury panel.

Bullet Proof Anand is a comical homage to the Hindi gangster films of the 1990s. The film also pays tribute to Bruce Lee and Rajesh Khanna's iconic character Anand. In the film,  Mishra and Jha play North Indian goons who are inspired by the martial arts legend while Jaaferi will be seen as the titular gangster.

Speaking about the selection of his short film at the IFFM, Jha said, “It is a matter of great honour and joy to have Bullet Proof Anand, a film that’s super special and close to my heart, premiere at the IFFM this year. This film is also my second collaboration with the legendary Sanjay Mishra after Angrezi Mein Kehte Hain (2018) and I’m very excited to see the audiences’ reaction to it at the festival.”

Mishra said that in the past decade the film industry has been generating diverse and variegated works he believes that Bullet Proof Anand falls into this category. "I feel absolutely elated to have our film screen at the IFFM 2021, as well as see the other incredible films that have made it to the line-up this year," he said.

Bullet Proof Anand has been directed by Alok Sharma, who has previously scripted and directed content for various shows.  He started his career as a comic book artist with Virgin Comics and has worked as a creator with brands such as Disney, Cartoon Network, Fox, Reliance Animation, Yash Raj Films, Red Chillies Entertainment and Raj Comics.

Speaking about his short film's selection, Sharma said in a statement, "Our short film’s selection at the IFFM this year has brought about immense pride to the entire team. I’m very excited to be a part of the festival, especially because of the excellent quality of films and discussions that take place there, which is a paradise for cinephiles such as me. I can’t wait to see how our film is received on a big platform such as this one.”