When the Dharamshala International Film Festival (DIFF) started in 2012, there were no cinema halls in McLeod Ganj.
Filmmaker couple-collaborators Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam brought their experience of the hospitality of small towns overseas hosting film festivals to the Dalai Lama’s backyard.
Fourteen editions later, DIFF, now held in Tibetan Children’s Village in Upper Dharamshala, has grown.
From around 2,000 attendees in its inaugural edition to over 15,000 in 2025.
The film recently won the prestigious New Currents Award and Songwon Vision Audience Award (Asia) at the Busan International Film Festival (BIFF).
When the Dharamshala International Film Festival (DIFF) started in 2012, there were no cinema halls in McLeod Ganj. Films were shown on DVDs. Filmmaker couple-collaborators Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam brought their experience of the hospitality of small towns overseas hosting film festivals to the Dalai Lama’s backyard. Fourteen editions later, DIFF, now held in Tibetan Children’s Village in Upper Dharamshala, has grown. From around 2,000 attendees in its inaugural edition to over 15,000 in 2025.
While Hansal Mehta’s career-pivoting directorial Shahid (2012), starring Rajkummar Rao, opened the first edition, a black-and-white Punjabi drama, Birds in the Dark/ Hanere De Panchi, produced by Mehta, will close the 15th edition today. The film recently won the prestigious New Currents Award and Songwon Vision Audience Award (Asia) at the Busan International Film Festival (BIFF).
