Grand Curtain Raiser of 19th International Children Film Festival India 2015, Hyderabad

The countdown is on to the 19th anniversary of Golden Elephant International Children's Film Festival, India (ICFFI).

The Festival returns November 14 to 20 with fresh films, special guests, and epic events in Hyderabad. With Just 24 hours to go, ICFFI Is offering a sneak peek of what audiences can expect at this year's fest starting with the Telugu films.

Dr. Shravan Kumar, ICFFI's Festival Director and CEO, Children's Film Society, India (CFSI), says, "The ICFFI continues to be a must-attend event for children and emerging filmmakers, and we are pleased to carve out our own unique niche by offering an impressive selection of national and international cinema.

This year's titles cast a wide net in terms of subject matter, and the 19lh ICFFI has something for everyone. There's innovative new voices from young directors hoping to find new ways of telling stories and connecting with child audiences. With 19 entries coming from Telugu language, the selection committee has selected 6 of them for screening during the Festival."

Shrl Mukesh Khanna, Chairman, CFSI said, "I wish all the best to children who are participating in this festival and especially the Telugu audience to enjoy the movies in Telugu Line up."

One such example is the movie 'A dream of Apara', directed by 15-year-old Abha Naktode, which tells the story of a young teenager, Apara, living in the West, and her passion to learn, desire to teach others Kuchipudi and promote the art form of Kuchipudi.
Another example of seeking out new narrative approaches, is 'Cycle Donga - The Bicycle Thief. Directed by KVS Mouii, the film is about the friendship of Ravi and Raghu. Their friendship takes a turn when Raghu gets a new cycle. They become friends once again when Ravi also gets a cycle. But Ravi's cycle goes missing leading to misunderstanding between the two friends...What happens next forms the story.

Continuing the celebration of the human spirit, is the short film 'Winner'. A young girl, Nagarani lost her eye sight in an acid attack. Losing her vision, she also loses all hope for the future she had always dreamed of having. Her friends then help restore her confidence and self-respect, lifting her out of the darkness and into the light. 'Abdul', directed by Anand Gurram, is the story of a 10-year-old boy, the son of a banana seller. Abdul's father takes him along ever day to help him with his work Abdul's daily routine makes him late to school every day. One day Abdul's father sadly dies in a bomb blast, and Abdul is forced to take care of his father's business.

'AATMA The Soul' is a movie based on proving that Indians learnt civilizations & sacraments through temples. It preaches that the temples which rendered invaluable services are the soul of India and our primary responsibility is to protect our temples. Through this movie, director Kottapalli Seetaram, strengthens our traditions and promotes interest towards it in the minds of children by showing its vitality.