India’s colourful and diverse culture was very much a part of the awards celebration as there were the beats of the dhol, performers dressed in traditional Indian classical attires, Odissi dance, Bhangra and more.

Composers Sachin-Jigar added the chutzpah with some of their Bollywood tracks. The inclusion-themed ninth edition of the gala gave a Diversity Award to Freida Pinto who shot to fame and prominence first with her role in Oscar-winning drama Slumdog Millionaire. In her upcoming film Love Sonia, Freida is seen in a never-seen-before avatar.

Tabrez Noorani-directed Love Sonia which opened the IFFM gala and left the audience moved with a story around sex trafficking, won the Best Indie film. A special mention in this space went to Gali Guleiyan, which marks Dipesh Jain’s debut as a director.

The Equality in Cinema Award was given to Mahanati, the widely acclaimed Telugu and Tamil film on the life of south Indian actress Savitri, who made a mark in the 1950s and 1960s.

Actor Ali Fazal, who was the jury of the short film competition, chose To-let as the Indian winner and the Australian winner was Found which is on Islamophobia. Richa also gave away the IFFM Heroes Award, which celebrates real life heroes who have done good deeds.

IFFM with Rani hoisting the Indian flag as part of Independence Day celebrations at the Federation House also offered a stage for a dance competition, bringing the huge and diverse Indian community of Melbourne together.