Like last year, this year too, we witnessed some of the prestigious film festivals, including IFFI Goa, IFFK, which offered a diverse range of films, alongside interactive sessions, tributes and more.
These Indian film festivals highlighted some of the outstanding Indian and international titles.
Here are the key highlights from the major Indian film festivals in 2025.
Year-Ender 2025: Key Highlights From Indian Film Festivals
Here are the key highlights from some of the major Indian film festivals in 2025.
Summary
Film festivals are platforms that nurture new talent, raise questions, celebrate artistic freedom and filmmaking, and embrace inclusivity and diversity. Towards the end of 2025, we witnessed some of the major Indian film festivals that took the avid cinephile to the vibrant hub of Indian and world cinema. Here are some of the key highlights from Indian film festivals 2025, like IFFI, IFFK and more.
Key highlights from Indian film festivals 2025
IFFI Goa 2025
The 56th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa, which ran from November 20 to 28, 2025, screened over 240 films from 81 countries, with over 50 films directed by women. Brazilian film The Blue Trail opened the event. The Golden Peacock for best film was awarded to the Vietnamese entry Skin of Youth by Ash Mayfair, while the Silver Peacock for best director went to Santosh Davakhar for the Marathi thriller Gondhal.
Apart from the screenings, the festival also honoured superstar Rajinikanth for his five-decade journey during the closing ceremony of the event.
The festival also celebrated the birth centenaries of legendary filmmakers, including Guru Dutt, Raj Khosla, Ritwik Ghatak, P. Bhanumathi, Bhupen Hazarika, and Salil Chowdhury.
IFFK 2025
The International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK), organised by the Kerala State Chalachitra Academy, was held from December 12 to 19, 2025, in Thiruvananthapuram. The major highlight of the film festival was the Palestinian cinema, one of the key themes of IFFK. Dissident Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof served as the head of the jury for the international competition. Also, Palestine 36, directed by Palestinian filmmaker Annemarie Jacir, was the opening film of the 30th International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK).
KIFF 2025
The 31st Kolkata International Film Festival (KIFF), with the theme, 'Where Cinema Connects The World,' ran from November 6 to 13, 2025. It was a celebration of both Indian and international cinema, with screenings, competitions and tributes.
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Legendary filmmaker Ritwik Ghatak was honoured with a special Centenary Tribute. As part of the tribute, his films, including Ajantrik, Bari Theke Paliye, Meghe Dhaka Tara, Komal Gandhar, Titas Ekti Nadir Naam, and Subarnarekha, were screened.
Apart from Ghatak, Welsh actor Richard Burton, American filmmaker Sam Peckinpah, actor Santosh Dutta, music director Salil Chowdhury, and filmmaker Raj Khosla from India, were also honoured with Centenary tributes.
Shyam Benegal, David Lynch, Claudia Cardinale, Robert Redford, Arun Roy, Raja Mitra and Shashi Anand's films were screened as part of a special tribute.
Poland was the spotlight country of KIFF 2025, with 19 Polish films being screened. Five films by Filipino filmmaker Brillante Mendoza were screened as part of a retrospective.
ALT EFF 2025
The All Living Things Environmental Film Festival (ALT EFF), India’s largest and most impactful environmental film festival, took place from December 4–14, 2025, with an array of 80+ films from India and across the globe. Apart from screening some of the powerful films on environment, including Turtle Walker, Humans in the Loop, Panha, and others, ALT EFF announced India’s first dedicated environmental filmmaking fund of Rs 40 lakh to support stories that address ecological concerns.
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