Bollywood actor and director Aamir Khan will appear in conversation at BFI Southbank on July 16 as the closing gala of the 17th London Indian Film Festival, which will be held in London, Birmingham, Manchester, Sheffield and Bradford from July 9 to 19.
Khan’s event is in conjunction with the 25th anniversary screening of the Academy Award-nominated colonial epic Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India on July 12 at BFI Imax.
As previously announced, the festival will open with the European premiere of 52 Blues, directed by Ali El Arabi (Captain of Zaatari) and starring Adil Hussein and Neha Dhupia. The film will be screened at BFI Southbank on July 9th, followed by screenings in Birmingham, Sheffield and Greater London until July 17th.
The Central Gala, to be held at BFI Southbank on 11 July, will reunite the entire cast of 1990s BBC sketch comedy Goodness Gracious Me, with Sanjeev Bhaskar, Meera Char, Neena Wadia, Kulvinder Gill and Anil Gupta all set to take to the stage.
Restoration also supports this program. Pradip Krishen’s In Who Annie Gives It That Ones, which premiered in Berlin in 2026, will make its UK premiere in a new 4K version at BFI Southbank and HOME Manchester. This 1989 cult film is set in an architecture school in Delhi in the mid-1970s and was written and starred by Booker Prize winner Arundhati Roy. Originally produced for India’s national broadcaster Doordarshan, it disappeared from circulation for decades after being broadcast. The restoration by the Film Heritage Foundation will also give audiences an early glimpse of Shah Rukh Khan in a small role.
UK premieres include Jitank Singh Gurjal’s In Search of the Sky, which premiered in Toronto and also screened in London and Birmingham. Two Bangladeshi films will be screened from the 2026 Rotterdam International Film Festival: IFFR Big Screen Competition winner Rezwan Shahryar Sumit’s Master and Mehbaur Rahman Sumon’s Lloyd, both of which will be screened at the ICA, London and Midlands Arts Centre.
The festival’s ‘India AI & Film Future’ event, which will be the first in Europe to showcase Indian films made using AI as part of the creative process, will be held at BFI Southbank on July 11. The jury selection was overseen by director Shekhar Kapur and the panellists included Chaitanya Chinchkar, Arati Kadavu, Hardeep Gambhir, Deepa Bhatia and Prateek Arora. The event will be repeated in Manchester on October 2, in partnership with Manchester Metropolitan University.
Other works include LGBTQIA+ shorts program Too Desi Too Queer, co-curated by Manchester’s Rainbow Noir. Satyajit Ray Short Film Competition. A UK-Asian shorts showcase and industry panel ‘Creating new horizons for British Asian film talent – stronger together’ was held in partnership with Rifco Theater Company. Peter Brook’s Mahabharata will premiere in the North in Manchester, Bradford and Sheffield, and in the Midlands in Birmingham.
“We are delighted to open our 17th festival with 52 Blue, a gripping and moving film about a young man who finds his way against impossible odds, seemingly bucking the trends of these desperate times. Further inspiration is provided in key in-conversations with legendary trailblazers, Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan and Britain’s much-loved Goodness Gracious Me team. I’m happy to say that everyone is still at the top of their game. Bringing this glittering box of gems of independent films from the world’s leading film festivals to UK premieres across five city festivals will provide audiences with a rare treat and an opportunity to experience the rich creativity of the world’s most populous region,” said Carrie Rajinder Sawhney, Festival CEO and Programming Director.
“It has been 25 years since Lagaan was completed and it is difficult to explain in words what this journey has meant to us. I am really happy to celebrate this milestone with a screening at the BFI. It is very special to see how Lagaan continues to connect with audiences across generations and regions.”
The festival is supported by the National Lottery-funded BFI Audience Project Fund, with additional support from Dell, the British Council, Birmingham City University and Manchester Metropolitan University.
