NYIFF 2016 – Red Carpets, Star Power

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Little Black Book Events: NYIFF Opening Night Gala

Film festivals are always a draw –  you may say you come just for the movies but admit it, you’re also there to hobnob with the actors and the directors, to rub shoulders with celebrity and perhaps share a drink with the Starry Ones! Well, this year’s New York Indian Film Festival was no different – the red carpet was crammed with loads of directors, producers, actors, emerging as well as famous ones and festival-goers had a great time.

It certainly helped that the opening night film at the Skirball Center for the Performing Arts was the marvelous hidden gem – ‘Nachom-la Kumpasar’, (Let’s Dance to the Rhythm)  directed by Bardroy Barretto. It’s a love song to the world of jazz music set in Goa, and is a mesmerizing film with over 20 musical numbers. It stars the stunningly talented Palomi Ghosh as the tragic young singer Dona and the movie revolves around her totally.  So realistic was her performance that It was startling to see her in the flesh, away from the old Goa in today’s New York, clad in a shocking pink saree, flashing a radiant smile and very much an inhabitant of today’s world.

The evening had enough star power to light up the room with noted names like Salman Rushdie, Mira Nair, Madhur Jaffrey – and the lovely Palomi Ghosh who actually performed live with a musical band at the opening night gala. The evening’s host was Sree Sreenivasan who is Chief Digital Officer of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and brought the NYIFF to the social media heights.

Here is Lassi with Lavina’s Little Black Book – an image gallery to take you into that evening: