The 56th International Film Festival of India (IFFI 2025) concluded in Goa on Friday. The nine-day festival saw the participation of numerous filmmakers and artists from around the world. Goa Chief Minister Dr. Pramod Sawant and Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Dr. L. Murugan attended the closing ceremony. Also present were superstar Rajinikanth, Ranveer Singh, Rishabh Shetty, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Tovino Thomas, Vineet Singh, German actress Katharina Shutler, Rajeshwari Sachdev, Ramesh Sippy, and Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra. Rajinikanth receives the honor
Rajinikanth was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award for completing 50 years in Indian cinema. Rajinikanth arrived in Goa early in the morning and was welcomed by hotel staff and fans. Videos on social media showed him politely greeting fans amid the sound of drums. His family also joined the ceremony in the evening. Upon receiving the honor, Rajinikanth said, “I stand here with great humility and gratitude and thank the government of India from the bottom of my heart for recognizing and honoring my 50 years of work. Looking back, I feel like I only worked for 10-15 years, and the only reason for this is my love for cinema and acting. Therefore, even after 100 years, I would like to be born again as an actor, Rajinikanth. Thank you for your love and affection.” Tribute paid to late artists, including Dharmendra. The closing ceremony also paid tribute to the film industry legends who passed away this year. Titled “In Fond Remembrance of the Artists We Lost,” the presentation remembered Dharmendra, Kamini Kaushal, Sulakshana Pandit, Satish Shah, Piyush Pandey, Zubin Garg, and Shyam Benegal. Awards announced: This year’s Golden Peacock Award at IFFI went to the Vietnamese film “Skin of Youth.” The film’s director, Ash Mayfair, and actress, Tran Quan, received the honor on stage. The Silver Peacock for Best Actor (Male) was awarded to Uberheimer Rios for “A Poet,” while the Best Actress award went to Zara Sofiza Ostan. Santosh Dawakhar, director of the Marathi film “Gondhaal,” received the Best Director (Silver Peacock) award. Iranian director Hessam Farahmand and Estonian filmmaker Tonis Pil shared the Best Debut Director award. The Norwegian film “Safe House” received the ICFT-UNESCO Gandhi Medal. The film was praised for its portrayal of humanity and the struggle between right and wrong. Akinola Davis Jr. received the Special Jury Award for “My Father’s Shadow.” This year, the Indian Panorama section included 25 feature films, 20 non-feature films, and five debut features. Karan Singh Tyagi received the Best Debut Director award for “Kesari Chapter 2.” For the first time, an award was given in the OTT category at IFFI 2025. The web series ‘Bandish Bandits Season 2’ was chosen as the Best Web Series.
