Raj Kapoor's restored Awara to musings from Manipur

World premiere to include Indian film Superboys of Malegaon on the life of auteur Nasir Shaikh

- INDIRA KANNAN

From the world premiere of a high-quality digital restoration of an Indian classic to a debut feature from a Manipuri filmmaker, the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) is maintaining its tradition of premiering a wide range of Indian films spanning Bollywood blockbusters to independent films and regional cinema.

Last year, for instance, world premieres at TIFF included Laapataa Ladies, Thank You for Coming, Kill, and the Marathi film Sthal, with the last two winning audience and jury awards, respectively.

This year, at the ongoing 49th edition of TIFF, the biggest Indian draw could well be a film released more than seven decades ago. The 4K restoration of Raj Kapoor's evergreen hit, Awara (1951), will have its world premiere on Friday, September 13, in a fitting tribute to commemorate the iconic actor-director's 100th birth anniversary.

TIFF's Director of Programming Robyn Citizen describes Awara as "a vibrant, sensuous, and casually progressive must-see" film and a "highly influential classic of Bollywood cinema". Awara was restored in 4K by the National Film Development CorporationNational Film Archive of India under the National Film Heritage Mission, a project undertaken by the information and broadcasting ministry.