Guwahati, August 18: As the 9th Chalachitram National Film Festival 2025 (CNFF-25) sets for 25 & 26 October next at Jyoti Chitraban film studio premises in Kahilipara, nearly 100 film works have reached the organizing committee till 15 August from various parts of northeast Bharat and also outside the region. The two-day annual festival, initiated for fostering nationalism through cinemas and paying homage to the country’s thousands of years old civilization, culture and heritage, is made open for short features and documentaries (produced between 1 November 2024 and 15 September 2025) with a time frame of maximum 25 minutes.
Organised by Chalachitram (www.chalachitram.in), a subsidiary of Vishwa Samvad Kendra Assam, CNFF-25 with the central theme ‘Our Heritage, Our Pride’, is dedicated for providing a dignified space for the serious film-makers, cine workers, appreciators and general audience. The entries for both the competition (confined to northeastern film makers) and only screening categories (from the rest of India) have been received through FilmFreeway and other digital & non-digital communication facilities, where a few more entries are expected by 20 September next.
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The awards include Best Short Feature, Best Documentary, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Cinematography and Best Editing under Northeast category and Best Short Feature & Best Documentary in the national category. The winners will be honoured with trophies, certificates, and cash prizes, informed CNFF-25 secretary Bhagwat Pritam Dutta, adding that a high power review committee and a jury board have already formed.
The entries with various sub-themes like Indian heritage, indigenous society, heroes of the freedom movement, epics & mythology, national integration & solidarity, arts & artisans, manuscripts & paintings, museums, wood carving, indigenous festivals, ethnic groups, monuments & heritage sites, traditional sports, women empowerment, tradition & family values, yoga & Ayurveda, cultural nationalism, human rights, tourism potential, etc have been acknowledged, said VSK Assam secretary Kishor Shivam.
(Nava Thakuria is a senior Indian journalist who contributes to various media outlets including print and digital platforms of India and across the world.)