Kolkata, Nov 6 (UNI) Amidst glitz and glamour, the 31st Kolkata Film Festival was inaugurated on Thursday by veteran Bollywood actor and MP Shatrughan Sinha in the presence of a galaxy of celebrities from the Mumbai and Kolkata movie world.
Sinha declared the festival open, standing alongside West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, film makers Ramesh Sippy and Sujoy Ghosh, octogenarian singer Arati Mukherjee and former Indian cricket captain Sourav Ganguly at the packed-to-capacity Dhana Dhanya auditorium here.
A bouquet of 215 films sourced from 39 countries would be showcased at the fest, which is scheduled to end on November 13, with Poland as the focus country.
With its enduring motto, "Where Cinema Connects The World," the festival - one of Asia's most distinguished platforms for world cinema - is set to highlight films related to sports and the environment.

Features, shorts and documentaries in 18 Indian and 30 foreign languages are set to be screened across 21 venues.
The timeless Uttam Kumar and Suchitra Sen masterpiece "Saptapadi", setting the perfect tone for a festival rooted in Bengal's cinematic soul, was the inaugural film.
In its centenary tributes, KIFF 2025 will honour legendary artists Ritwik Ghatak, Richard Burton, Salil Chowdhury and Sam Penkinpah.
Forty-three feature films, 19 shorts and 10 documentaries have been shortlisted for the competition section. UNI NST SSP