Starting January 24, moviegoers in Singapore can watch 18 contemporary and classic Indian movies, including iconic films like Sholay and Pyaasa, at the Indian Film Festival 2025 (IFF 2025).
The event is being jointly hosted by the High Commission of India in Singapore and the Singapore Film Society from 24 January to 2 March.
According to an official news release from the High Commission, the film festival is being organised on a non-commercial basis with support from Ministry of Information & Broadcasting and National Film Development Corporation of India.
IFF will showcase three movies every weekend at Golden Village Cinema, Suntec City.
The festival will represent seven different Indian languages.
“All movies will be screened with English subtitles so that all Singaporeans are able to enjoy them,” the release stated.
The upcoming festival also coincides with India and Singapore’s 60th year of diplomatic relationship. According to the High Commission, the film festival is the first of many events which would be organised to celebrate the diplomatic milestone.
“A mixed range of movies have been selected from classics made decades ago to regional language hits. It is being organised on a non-commercial basis with support from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the National Film Development Corporation of India,” High Commissioner Dr Shilpak Ambule said on Wednesday.
“For India, cinema is not only a means of entertainment but also an important medium for expressing our values, traditions, customs and history. This festival provides a unique opportunity for the people of Singapore to experience the richness of Indian cinema,” the official event brochure quoted Ambule as saying.
“Our two countries share long friendship, and it is through such initiatives that we continue to enhance mutual understanding. I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to the Singaporean Government, Singapore Film Society, Golden Village Cinema, and all those involved in making this festival possible,” he added.
Kenneth Tan, the Chairman of Singapore Film Society, was quoted as saying, “India has long enjoyed a well-deserved global reputation for having the most prolific annual output of movies from any part of the world. Critical as well as commercial acclaim is part and parcel of the respected heritage of multiple genres of cinema from India. Family, community, history, culture; grand epics, personal stories; megastar celebrities, niche artistes – all of these, and more, are to be savoured and loved, amidst the amazing kaleidoscope of Indian films.”
“2025 is not only the 60th anniversary of Singapore’s independence. It is also the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between India and Singapore. The ‘hand-in-glove’ friendship and partnership between our two countries goes all the way back to the very birth of our nation itself. There can be no better milestone than this auspicious year in which to begin this beautiful new collaboration between the High Commission of India in Singapore, and Singapore’s longest-established national cultural cinema organisation,” Tan said.
Makers and movies
The festival will feature works of legends Satyajit Ray, Dev Anand and Guru Dutt, as well as modern day masters like SS Rajamouli.
The 18 movies to be featured are Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior (Hindi), Baaram (Tamil), RRR (Telugu), Sonar Kella (Bengali), Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (Hindi), Shatraj Ke Khilari (Hindi, Urdu), C.I.D. (Hindi), Sardar Udham (Hindi), Pyaasa (Hindi), Jewel Thief (Hindi), Baghban (Hindi), Gandhi And Co (Gujarati), Kaathal – The Core (Malayalam), Vaalvi (Marathi), Vikram (Tamil), Anand (Hindi), August 16, 1947 (Tamil), and Sholay (Hindi).
Screening dates:
Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior- 24.01.2025
Baaram- 25.01.2025
RRR- 26.01.2025
Sonar Kella- 31.01.2025
Zindagi na Milegi Dobara- 01.02.2025
Shatraj ke Khilari- 02.02.2025
C.I.D- 07.02.2025
Sardar Udham- 08.02.2025
Pyaasa- 09.02.2025
Jewel Thief- 14.02.2025
Baghban- 15.02.2025
Gandhi And Co- 16.02.2025
Kaathal – The Core- 21.02.2024
Vaalvi- 22.02.2024
Vikram- 23.02.2024
Anand- 28.02.2025
August 16 1947- 01.03.2025
Sholay- 02.03.2025
