Kantara Prequel, Kerala Story 2 Lead 15-Film IFFI Race in Goa

Rishab Shetty's "Kantara: A Legend – Chapter 1" and Volker Schlöndorff's "Visitation" are among 15 films competing in the International Competition at the 57th International Film Festival of India (IFFI), which runs Nov. 20-28 in Goa.

The section pairs 12 international titles with three from India. The third Indian entry, Gajendra Ahire's "Paro – The Untold Story of Bride Slavery," is an India-U.S. production produced by and starring Trupti Bhoir, centered on a woman sold into marriage.

Kamakhya Narayan Singh's "The Kerala Story 2: Goes Beyond," a sequel to 2023's "The Kerala Story," marks Singh's directing debut and was produced by Vipul Amrutlal Shah. Shetty's "Kantara: A Legend – Chapter 1" follows "Kantara," which competed in the same IFFI section in 2023.

Where did the international films come from?

Most of the 12 international entries arrive from major festivals. Japanese novelist Maha Harada's directing debut, "In My Father's Room," premiered in competition at San Sebastián. Serbian director Miroslav Terzić's "3 Weeks After," a Serbia, Bulgaria, Italy, Croatia and Luxembourg co-production, competed for Karlovy Vary's Crystal Globe.

Catalan filmmaker Meritxell Colell Aparicio's "Far From the Trees" (Spain, Peru, Italy) bowed in Locarno's main competition. Argentine duo Lorenzo Ferro and Lucas A. Vignale's debut "The River Train" launched in the Berlinale's Perspectives strand. Suzanne Andrews Correa's "The Huntress," from Mexico and the U.S., premiered at Sundance.

The remaining competitors span four continents:

• Daniel Monzón's "Pray for Us" (Spain, France)
• Manuela Martelli's "The Meltdown" (Chile, U.S., Spain, Mexico)
• Narghiza Dotieva's "Skylark" (Kyrgyzstan)
• Mees Peijnenburg's "A Family" (Netherlands, Belgium)
• Tiago Guedes' "Aquí" (Portugal, France)
• Lê Bảo's "Hearing," made across nine territories: Vietnam, Singapore, Norway, France, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Cambodia, Thailand and Taiwan

Who picks the winner?

Aanand L. Rai, the Indian director-producer behind "Raanjhanaa," "Tanu Weds Manu" and "Atrangi Re," leads the jury. Through his company Colour Yellow, he has backed titles including the horror film "Tumbbad," and he presented Amit V. Masurkar's political satire "Newton," which India sent to the 90th Academy Awards as its official entry.

Argentine director and screenwriter Sol Berruezo Pichon-Riviere, based in Iceland, joins him. Her debut, "Mamá, mamá, mamá," made with an all-female cast and crew, earned a special mention in the Berlinale's Generation Kplus competition in 2020, when she was the youngest director at the festival. Her second feature, "Nuestros días más felices," made with support from Biennale College Cinema, premiered in Venice.

Thai filmmaker Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke won the grand prize at Cannes Critics' Week in 2025 with his debut feature, "A Useful Ghost." His short "The Bovine Comedy" took a Pardino d'Oro at Locarno this year.

Colombian sound designer María Alejandra Rojas, who works out of Mexico through her company Sonnet, has credits on Carlos Reygadas' "Heil Jupiter!," Gabriel Mascaro's "The Blue Trail," Allison O'Daniel's "The Tuba Thieves" and Carla Gutiérrez's "Frida." Her sound art has been exhibited at MoMA and the Venice Biennale.

Romanian writer, director and producer Bogdan Mureșanu completes the panel. His feature "The New Year That Never Came" collected 23 international awards, among them best film in Venice's Horizons section and the Fipresci prize. The film is also a Goa alumnus: it won IFFI's Silver Peacock for best direction.

What does this change for Indian cinema's festival profile?

The lineup shows IFFI positioning itself as a destination for festival-circuit premieres rather than a local showcase. With a prequel to a 2023 crowd-pleaser and a jury stocked with Venice, Cannes and Berlinale laureates, Goa's Nov. 20-28 edition gives Indian and international films a shared competitive stage.