Finally it was the last day, yesterday to the 8 day long film fiesta. The 13th Mumbai Film Festival (MAMI), which kick started on 13th October, concluded last evening, after showcasing over 200 films from 60 countries across various sections at its three venues- Cinemax Versova, Cinemax Sion and Metro Big Cinemas.
The eight day affair came to an end with its closing film ‘Dolphin’s Tale’ directed by Charles Martin Smith starring Morgan Freeman, Ashley Judd amongst others which was followed by the closing night awards function event at ‘Sun n Sand’ hosted by actress Isha Koppikhar.
The International lifetime achievement award was given to Morgan Freeman and Indian lifetime achievement award was given to Gulzar. Morgan Freeman told the Mumbai Film Festival this through a video message last night after accepting the Lifetime Achievement award, "I have played crooks and cops. I have even played god. But my goal has always been to tell stories. I cannot describe how proud I am of having worked for so long. I work for the joy of doing it and I hope you have got as much joy from my work as I have."
In the International Competition category, ‘The Golden Gateway Award’ and cash prize, of US $ 100,000 for The Best Film was presented to French film ‘My Little Princess’ directed by Eva Ionesco. ‘The Silver Gateway Award’ for the Jury Grand Prize and a cash prize, of US $ 50,000 was presented to the Canadian film ‘The Salesman’ (Le Vendeur) directed by Sebastien Pilote.
In the Dimensions Mumbai category, The Silver Gateway Award and cash prize of Rs 100,000 for The Best Film was presented to Ameya Gore and Sunaina Mahadik for ‘Facelift’. The Silver Gateway Award and cash prize of Rs 50,000 for The Second Best Film was presented to Abhay Kumar for ‘Life is a Beach’. The Jury Special Mention Award was given to Chinmaya Nagesh Dalvi for ‘Bombay Snow’ and to Harshvir Oberai for ‘The Circle Is Mine’.
The Mumbai Young Critics Silver Gateway Award was presented to Markus Schleinzer for ‘Michael’.
Regular attendees of the festival included Yash Chopra, Pamela Chopra, Shyam Benegal, Ramesh Sippy, Kiran Juneja, Rohan Sippy, Kiran Rao, Anurag Kashyap, Vikramadiya Motwane, Onir, Sanjay Suri, Ranvir Shorey, Shahana Goswami, Satish Kaushik, Rakesh Bedi, Kanwaljit Singh, Vrajesh Hirjee, Rajat Barmecha, Meiyang Chang, Pravesh Rana, Sharbani Mukherjee amongst many others.
The closing ceremony event also witnessed numerous celebrities that include award winning International and Indian actors, directors and producers.
Over a lakh of people watched the films making it the largest festival held in India so far. MAMI came to an end leaving behind beautiful memories and an excitement for next year’s festival.