The 26th edition of the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) started on Friday March 18. It is one of the largest film festivals in South Asia. For the first time the inaugural of the festival started with screening one of the much talked about film of director Abdullah Mohammad Saad’s 'Rehana Maryam Noor' which is a collaboration of Bangladesh, Singapore, and Qatar.
Not only that, thanks to 'Rehana', actress Azmeri Haque Bandhan got special honour in this event. At the opening ceremony she was handed over a bouquet of flowers from Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and also got praised on the festival's official Facebook page.
“Flawless! Azmeri Haque, the lead actor of the opening film #Rehana awestruck by the reception at IFFK.
Rehana, which was the Opening Film of the 26th edition, is the first-ever official selection film from Bangladesh to be shown in the Un Certain Regard section of the Festival de Cannes. Directed by Abdullah Mohammad Saad, Rehana takes a hard look at the issues faced by women who challenge entrenched power structures.”
The actress was impressed by the love of the organisers and the audience. She expressed her feelings to the media, "More than three thousand spectators, critics and others were present. A movie about the culture of Bangladesh has fascinated me with the love of people from different cultures. I have worked so hard, it has been successful.’
‘Rehana Maryam Noor’ will be screened for two more days at the 7-day International film Festival of Kerala on March 21, 08:45 PM, Tagore Theatre, and on March 23, 03:15 PM, Ajanta Theatre. Bandhan will return to the country at the end of the festival on March 25.
It was the first Bangladeshi feature film to feature in the "Un Certain Regard" section of the 74th Cannes Film. Also took part in the Hong Kong Asian Film Festival (HKAFF) in the 'New Talent Award' category of the festival.
Before 'Rehana Maryam Noor', Busan and BFI were nominated at the London Film Festival. Bandhan has played the role of ‘Rehana Maryam Noor’ in the film and the actress of the film Azmeri Haque Badhon has scored a nomination in the 14th Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA) in "Best Actress" category for her performance.
