Melbourne had witnessed one of the grandest nights at the annual Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM) Awards yesterday in the Palais Theatre. The theme of the festival was ‘Inclusion’. With the energetic beats of dhol, performers dressed in traditional Indian classical attires, Odissi dance, Bhangra and more, India’s colourful and diverse culture was showcased amazingly in the awards celebration.

Rani Mukerji who made a great comeback into Bollywood after the birth of her daughter, Adira, had won million of hearts with her mind-blowing performance in Yash Raj Films’ superhit film ‘Hichki’. Essaying the role of a passionate teacher, Naina Mathur, who deals with Tourette Syndrome, her power-packed performance with the key message of equal treatment for people with physical challenges in India, she inspired a massive number of people with her positive change. This film was not only super-hit in India but also was a huge hit globally too. And thereby, the IFFM has awarded Rani with the ‘Best Actress’ Award for the year and also bestowed an ‘Excellence In Cinema’ Award in the event.

Overwhelmed by the love Rani received, she thanked everyone saying, “Indian Film Festival of Melbourne has always welcomed the best of Indian cinema and celebrated our form of storytelling. I feel very proud and thankful that Hichki has been accepted and loved by audiences here. It’s a story with universal resonance, and it’s spirit of positivity has won over Indians and locals here. I am also grateful for winning the Best Actress Award and sincerely thank everyone for applauding my performance. I have found this film festival a vibrant and progressive setting for cinema and its impact beyond languages and cultures. I thoroughly enjoyed being in Melbourne and hope to travel with my films here in the near future.”

The panel of jury included Andrew Anastasios, Jill Bilcock, Geoffrey Wright, Nikkhil Advani, Rajeev Masand, Simi Garewal and Sue Maslin, who unanimously decided upon Rani Mukerji’s Naina Mathur role from ‘Hichki’.