Dubai never rests when it comes to entertainment. The better the weather, the busier it gets and this December promises a mega line-up of events that are scheduled in the coming few days.
DubaiDiary
The 12th Season of DIFF brings the best of global cinema to the UAE.
Dubai never rests when it comes to entertainment. The better the weather, the busier it gets and this December promises a mega line-up of events that are scheduled in the coming few days.
The first one to roll is the prestigious Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) which is turning 12 this year. We’re expecting some serious representation from Hollywood, Bollywood and the Arab film industry; lots of stars are expected to make an appearance at the eight day-long festival that will feature 134 films from 60 countries. And we’re talking everyone from Desperate Housewives star Eva Longoria and Creed star Micheal B to Oscar-nominated director Deepa Mehta. Slumdog Millionaire’s Dev Patel, who features as the Indian mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan in The Man Who Knew Infinity, will also attend the screening of his film.
Dilwale will probably be the epicenter of the festival (at least for the desis) as Bollywood superstars Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol will be walking the DIFF red carpet for an exclusive gala evening to commemorate the 5th Anniversary of Filmfare Middle-East in the region. King of Disco, the ren-owned musician Bappi Lahiri, and veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah, whose film Waiting is also being screened, will be awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award.
Our very own Fawad Khan is also anticipated to join the stars at the gala night.
Over 120 feature length films from documentaries and short stories from across 60 countries will be screened over the course of the week; the festival will also include some international premieres. Richard Dreyfus will be present to mark the 40th anniversary of his iconic film Jaws. Pride of Pakistan, Academy Award winner Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy’s Song of Lahore will also be screened during the festival.
DIFF has a fabulously entertaining line-up for children, with several fantasies being featured throughout the week. Films like The Peanuts Movie that brings back Snoopy, Olivier Ringer’s Birds of Passage and Savva-Heart of the Warrior will be also screened. Nagesh Kukunoor’s Dhanak (Rainbow) in which the protagonist Pari and her blind sibling Chotu take up a 300 kilometers journey to meet their idol Shah Rukh Khan (who Pari believes can cure Chotu’s blindness) is expected to open to packed houses.
In a nutshell, this year’s festival looks very appealing.
Besides DIFF, almost everyone in Dubai is looking forward to Dilwale and the fact that the star cast will be flying down to Dubai for promoting their film. The film, which is slated to release on the 17th of December in the UAE, is one of India’s most anticipated film releases of 2015, and will see Bollywood’s iconic onscreen couple, Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol, reunite after five years. Dilwale also stars the latest heartthrob Varun Dhawan and rising star Kriti Sanon.
So if you are in Dubai this weekend then chances are that you might bump into King Khan and Kajol at the Mall of Emirates as they will be visiting the newly-opened Apple store which is the first Apple store of the Middle-East. And if you want to experience the frenzy that Shah Rukh Khan is known to create then visit Arabian Centre Mall, where SRK (alongwith his Dilwale troupe) will be meeting and greeting fans.
Saving the best news for the last, Instep will be present at these events so stay tuned as we walk you through the entertaining week ahead.
– Sadiq Saleem, is a UAE based entertainment journalist. He can be contacted on his page fb/sidsaidso
