PANAJI: Denmark’s ‘Into the Darkness’, which portrays dilemmas of the Danish population against the backdrop of World War II, took home the coveted Golden Peacock at the 51st International Film Festival of India (Iffi). Assamese film ‘Bridge’ by Kripal Kalita about the struggles of villagers living across a swelling river was the only Indian film to win an award.
‘Bridge’ won the special mention from the jury award for bringing to life the pain of Assamese villages which face hardships due to the annual flooding. Taiwan’s ‘The Silent Forest’ bagged two Silver Peacocks at Iffi for best director to Chen-Nien Ko and best male actor award to Tzu-Chuan Liu.
The film is based on real-life events involving a hearing-impaired boy. While most award winners accepted their prizes virtually, Iffi organisers hailed the festival as a “blueprint for others across the world to follow its hybrid format during the pandemic”. This edition of the festival conquered all ifs and buts, said Union minister for state for environment and forests Babul Supriyo.
“I am proud that we could hold the festival despite the challenges thrown by the Covid-19 pandemic,” said secretary for Information and Broadcasting ministry, GoI, Amit Khare.