Mumbai, Aug 16 (IANS): Filmmaker Imtiaz Ali, Kabir Khan, Onir and Rima Das’ anthology titled “My Melbourne” opened the 15th edition of the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM) with names such as Kartik Aaryan, Rajkumar Hirani, Karan Johar and Malaika Arora in attendance.

The opening ceremony began with the traditional Indian lamp-lighting, symbolising the start of the festival.

Imtiaz said: “I feel it was me who truly learnt from this film. It felt like going back to school and learning something brand new each day. It was an incredible honour to work with everyone on this project and truly collaborate together”.

“My Melbourne” explores themes of race, gender, sexuality, and disability. Each short film is inspired by stories of several migrants and people that belong and make the fabric of a city they call home.

Kabir said: “On behalf of the Hindi film industry I’m grateful. We got to work with such an incredible cast and crew on the film. It was a brand new format for me and the learning experience was so enriching on the sets of this film.”

“We drew inspiration from stories of people who live in Melbourne and for me it was such an honour to meet Setara and tell her story on celluloid”.

Mitu Bhowmik Lange, Festival Director, along with the filmmakers and other Victorian delegates, inaugurated the festival.

Talking about the opening film, Lange shared: "This year’s opening night film, My Melbourne, perfectly encapsulates the essence of what the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne stands for—diversity, inclusivity, and storytelling that transcends boundaries.

“There’s a real democratisation of content at the moment which has helped us to make the film in 5 languages. These are all very important stories that our important directors have picked carefully."

"It’s an honour to have such distinguished filmmakers like Imtiaz Ali, Kabir Khan, Rima Das, and Onir contributing to this unique project that highlights the vibrant culture of Melbourne”.