'I've never had a method, But I’ve had many great teachers. Many of them have been film festivals' said veteran actor Kamal Hassan in the 15th Mumbai Film Festival that took off yesterday and will go on for the coming eight days. Hassan, who has been involved with over 200 films as actor, director, producer and screenwriter, was felicitated with the life time achievement award in the festival. He arrived with his partner Gouthami and was as gracious as ever on the red carpet too.

Earlier, the Festival was inaugurated by the Maharshtra Chief Minister Prudhviraj Chauhan who, responding to a request by Shyam Benegal promised to help the festival find greater state support in terms of funding. Also on stage were Canada-based Indian film maker Deepa Mehta ('Fire,' 'Water'), Japanese director and actor Masato Harada, Sonakshi Sinha ('Dabangg'), a fast-rising starlet from a Bollywood dynasty, Afghan director Siddiq Barmak and Australia’s Jill Bilcock, a regular editor on the films of Baz Luhrmann ('Moulin Rouge') and Shekhar Kapur ('Elizabeth')

MAMI (Mumbai Academy of Moving Image) is organizing the festival and supported by Reliance Entertainment. Over 200 films from 65 countries will be screened in the eight day festival opening with Lee Daniels’ 2013 film ‘The Butler’, a gripping drama of a White House staffer who saw the roll of history through the eyes of the seven Presidents he served, from Eisenhower to Reagan.