Archive · 11 Nov 2025
IFFI's All-Male Jury Panel Sparks Outrage Online
Imagine a big movie festival called IFFI where people watch films from all over the world.
The people who choose which Indian films are shown in a special part of the festival are called a jury.
This year, the jury that picked the Indian movies only had men.
When people saw this, they got upset and said it wasn't fair.
They posted online that it's important to have both men and women on the jury.
They wanted the festival organizers to do a better job of including women in the future.
The festival will still show many movies, but people are talking about this jury selection.
The 56th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) will take place in Panaji, Goa from November 20-28.
IFFI will showcase over 240 films from 81 countries, including world, international, and Asian premieres.
The jury for the Indian Panorama section of IFFI has been announced, with Raja Bundela heading the feature film jury.
Social media users and netizens criticized the jury, noting the absence of any women on the panel.
Online comments expressed disappointment and called for better gender representation in the jury selection.
- Who
- Netizens and social media users criticized the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) and its jury selection for the Indian Panorama section.
- What
- An all-male jury panel for the Indian Panorama section of the 56th IFFI sparked widespread criticism online.
- When
- The jury was unveiled on Monday, leading to immediate online backlash. The festival is scheduled from November 20 to 28.
- Where
- Panaji, Goa (location of IFFI)
- Why
- The criticism stems from the perceived lack of gender diversity and representation, as no women were included in the jury.
Criticism of IFFI's Jury Selection
Festival Details
Gender Representation
Criticism of IFFI's Jury Selection
Netizens and social media users expressed strong disapproval and disappointment over the absence of women on the jury panel for the Indian Panorama section of IFFI, calling it 'glaring' and urging for improvement.
Festival Details
The IFFI Indian Panorama jury for the feature film category is headed by Raja Bundela and includes members like Dharam Gulati (non-feature jury lead), Krishna Hebbale, Kamlesh K Mishra, Malay Ray, Subhash Sehgal, Jadumoni Dutta, Aroon Baksi, Asim Sinha, Ashok Sharan, Sukumar Jatania, BS Basavaraju, Amaresh Chakrabarti, and Napoleon Thanga.
- Festival Name
- 56th International Film Festival of India (IFFI)
- Dates
- November 20 to November 28
- Location
- Panaji, Goa
- Films Featured
- Over 240 films from 81 countries
- Special Premieres
- 13 world premieres, 5 international premieres, 44 Asian premieres
- Festival Director
- Shekhar Kapur
- Feature Film Jury Head
- Raja Bundela
- Non-Feature Jury Head
- Dharam Gulati