Opening the 20th Kolkata International Film Festival (KIFF) on November 10, Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan urged Australian filmmaker Paul Cox and other international dignitaries to relish the experiences that Kolkata has to offer, including the variety of sweets.
Addressing a star-studded audience at the Netaji Indoor Stadium in Kolkata, Khan spoke in a decent smattering of Bengali, in keeping with his promise made at the event last year.
“I had promised last year that I would speak in Bengali this time... ami Bangla e kotha bole khub anondito [I am very happy to speak in Bengali]. Jodi kono bhool hoye thaake amake khome korben [forgive me if I make any mistakes],” he said to thunderous applause and series of spirited whistling at the inauguration.
Khan, the brand ambassador of West Bengal and one of chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s go-to guys for large-scale events, regaled the audiences in his usual suave and sleek style.
This was his fourth KIFF opening ceremony.
Acknowledging Kolkata’s joie-de-vivre as the “greatest celebration of life”, he encouraged Cox and others to try rosogolla and chomchom sweets before they leave the city.
Khan also stressed the importance of cinema in bringing people together in a fast-changing world.
“Social networking, for example, allows you to interact with others without really interacting with others. This is why cinema matters, because it brings people together in a single experience of life to which they relate collectively,” he said.
Dedicating the KIFF to the “honest efforts of all involved”, the actor said “there ought to be a feeling of celebration and happiness, a sharing of India, of life and its experiences” at the festival.
