57th IFFI to be held in Goa from November 20 2026
The festival will feature 159 films from 86 countries under the theme ‘Stories Without Borders’.
The 57th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) is scheduled to take place in Goa from November 20 to 28, 2026, according to reports by The News Mill, ANI, and Hindustan Times. The event will follow the theme ‘Stories Without Borders’ to highlight how cinema bridges cultural and geographical divides.
The festival will showcase 159 films representing 86 different nations, chosen from a pool of roughly 1,400 entries. The Polish production ‘Fatherland’, directed by Paweł Pawlikowski, will serve as the opening film. In the Indian Panorama segment, the film ‘Dhurandhar’, starring Ranveer Singh, will be the opening feature.
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant stated at a curtain-raiser press conference in Dona Paula on November 13 that the state is ready to welcome the global film community. He noted that IFFI has become a significant international platform for various cinema professionals every November.
Festival director and filmmaker Ashutosh Gowariker said the theme acted as a guiding principle to see how films connect with audiences by challenging traditional boundaries. The programme includes the International Competition, the Best Debut Feature Film Competition, and the ICFT-UNESCO Gandhi Medal, alongside a Best Web Series (OTT) Award.
The International Competition jury will be led by Indian filmmaker Aanand L Rai. Other jury members include Bogdan Mureșanu, María Alejandra Rojas, Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke, and Sol Berruezo Pichon-Rivière. Professor Ahmed Bedjaoui will head the ICFT-UNESCO Gandhi Medal jury.