Girl power and cinema root ed in reality were buzzwords at the inaugural cer emony for the 47th edition of International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa on Sunday. Hosted by actresses Surveen Chawla and Suhasini Maniratnam, the show kicked off with the theme, “Nari ­ - The changing face of women in Indian cinema over the years“. Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting, Venkaiah Naidu, said, “Cinema can be an effective tool of social change and needs to coexist with reality, to pass the test of '2Rs', reason and reality.“

Chief guest Ramesh Sippy who kept calling IFFI 'IIFA' joined playback singer SP Balasubrahmanyam to felicitate South Korean filmmaker Im Kwon-Taek with the Lifetime Achievement Award. The father of Korean cinema, Kwon-Taek who has made over a 100 films in five decades, revealed that he is a fan of Shah Rukh Khan and films like 3 Idiots and Slumdog Millionaire. “I'm inspired by Indian thought when I make films on Buddha and Buddhism,“ he admitted, adding that he's looking forward to working on India co-productions.

Balasubrahmanyam was conferred the Centenary Award for Indian Film Personality of the Year by Naidu, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, chairman of the Children's Film Society of India Mukesh Khanna and Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar. “I'm embarrassed to know how ancient I am. I don't know how 50 years have passed and I'm still working. I'm thankful to the entire industry, everyone who glorified my work onscreen,“ he said. Actor Sushant Singh Rajput and I & B secretary, Ajay Mittal, felicitated this year's jury, chaired by Czech-born American writer-director Ivan Passer and comprising Moroccan filmmaker Leila Kilani, Indian filmmaker Nagesh Kukunoor, Brit cinematographer Larry Smith and Yugoslav filmmaker Lordan Zafranovic.

Opening with the Polish film, After Image, IFFI 2016 is marked with several firsts: A system for the visually impaired by UNESCO and NGO Saksham, wherein films have been audio-described, Barco's laser projection technology that offers superior image quality, Best Directorial Debut in Feature category, and a UNESCO Gandhi medal for films that preach nonviolence. A package of films that were awarded at the Swachch Bharat event on October 2 are also scheduled to be screened.