Film festival on Independence Day showcasing “Freedom Struggle and Freedom Fighters"

Films Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting will hold film festival on occasion of 72nd Independence Day on the theme, “Freedom Struggle and Freedom Fighters”, on 15th August 2018.

Films Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting will hold film festival on occasion of 72^nd Independence Day on the theme, "Freedom Struggle and Freedom Fighters", on 15^th August 2018.

The festival will be inaugurated by Smt. Rama Khandwala, nonagenarian freedom fighter and Indian National Army (INA) veteran. During the festival, noteworthy documentary films on freedom struggle and freedom fighters will be screened from 10:30 AM, apart from a cultural performance featuring flute recital by veteran artist, Pt. Sunil Kant Gupta and patriotic songs by the staff of Films Division.

INA veteran Smt. Rama Khandwala (91) is a recipient of the prestigious National Tourism Award from the President of India, for the `Best Tourist Guide' in the year 2017. Her daunting stamina stems from her early training as a recruit in Subhash Chandra Bose's Indian National Army (INA).

A Second Lieutenant belonging to the Rani Jhansi regiment in Rangoon in Burma, Smt. Khandwala spent her days marching, hoisting flags, learning how to wield a rifle, a bayonet, and the Bren Machine Gun. Khandwala's fluency in Japanese - a result of the Japanese occupation of Burma from 1942-1945 - helped her bond with tourists from Japan.

Her language skills and interest in Buddhism even led her to meet the Dalai Lama and the King of Bhutan. She met the former while working as an interpreter for a Japanese documentary and she accompanied the latter to Elephanta's Buddhist caves as a guide.