The 24th annual UK Asian Film Festival presented the Tongues on Fire Flame Awards at the Closing Gala ceremony on Sunday 15th May at BFI Southbank. The presentation, hosted by actors, Nisha Aaliya and Yanick Ghanty, followed the UK Premiere of Gangnam Girls. Representing the film at the Closing Gala were director, Charmi Nemchand Chheda, and producer, Nyema Zam. Additional guests in attendance included actors, Hina Khan, Lillete Dubey, Shaheen Khan, Yasir Hussain, Sudha Bhuchar, Himanshi Choudhry, Beo Raana Zafar, Harv Nagra and Vishnu Krishnan; supermodel and actress, Elena Fernandes; and music artists, Talvin Singh OBE and Abbas Hasan.
The ‘Dare To Dream’ theme of this year’s festival commemorated 75 years of India and Pakistan’s Independence. The curation acknowledged personal and societal freedoms as well as address topical issues such as climate change and human resilience in the face of oppression through the festival programme.
Tongues on Fire Flame Award-winners:
Best Film Curator’s Choice: Gandhi & Co
Best Short Film: February 1st
Best Actor: Yasir Hussain
Celebrating Dare to Dream Theme: Adieu Godard
Best Original Screenplay: Adh Chanani Raat
Best Documentary: Kekee Manzil: House of Art
Best Music Score: Talvin Singh
Best Director: Abu Aleeha
Best Debut Feature Film: Gangnam Girls
Best Film: Dostojee, Two Friends
Trail Blazer: Hina Khan (check out our exclusive interview here)
Rising Star Award: Nisha Aaliya
Best Animated Film: Priya And The Twirling Wind
Championing Change: Emergence – Out of Shadows
Silver Flame Award – Contribution to Film & Television: Shaheen Khan
Golden Flame Award – Contribution to Film and Theatre: Lillete Dubey
UK Asian Film Festival was powered by Sunrise Radio; Official Online Media Partner was DESIblitz; and TV Partner for UKAFF Short Film Competition was Shorts TV. Presented by Tongues on Fire, the 22nd edition ran in venues across London, Birmingham, Leicester, Coventry, Warwick, Bradford, Stockton and Glasgow; and online via BFI Player and Modern Films. UKAFF was supported by the BFI awarding funds from the National Lottery and Arts Council England using funds from the National Lottery and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). #HereforCulture.
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