Irrfan Khan to be honoured at Dubai film festival

Dubai: Actor Irrfan Khan is set to be honoured at the 14th edition of Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) in December for his "incredible body of work".

The much awaited film festival will take place from December 6 to December 13.

The opening ceremony of DIFF will present three Honorary Awards, to celebrate significant achievements and contributions to the film industry of the individuals.

Irrfan, a significant figure in Indian film and television since the early 1990s with an incredible body of work of more than 80 films in India as well as his works in British films and Hollywood, will be honoured for his work which includes projects like The Namesake, Slumdog Millionaire, The Lunchbox and Life of Pi, read the film festival's official website.

 His film The Song of Scorpions will be screened at DIFF 2017.

The Last Jedi will close the film festival before launching in the Middle East while director Scott Cooper's Hostiles is slated to kick off the film extravaganza.

The festival will be hosted at the Madinat Jumeirah and screen a total of 140 films from 51 countries spanning feature, non-fiction and short films, including 50 world and international premieres.

The films, crafted in more than 38 languages, populate DIFF's Arab and Emirati competitions and its out-of-competition segments dedicated to children, the Arab world, Virtual Reality and cinema from around the globe.

The festival is also feting prominent Egyptian screenwriter Wahid Hamed with a lifetime achievement award during the opening ceremony.

Hamed's long list of Egyptian film and TV credits includes The Yacoubian Building, directed by his son, Marwan Hamed, a watershed work that tackled taboo such as homosexuality and travelled widely.

Other films being showcased here include James Franco's The Disaster Artist, The Shape of Water, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri, and Alexander Payne's Downsizing.

Almost half the Arabic competition is made up by works from female directors, including The Man Behind the Microphone from British-Tunisian director Claire Belhassine, about her grandfather, the popular Tunisian singer and composer Hedi Jouini; Cactus Flower, Egyptian director Hala Elkoussy's female empowerment road movie; and Benzine, Tunisian first-timer Sarra Abidi's illegal immigration drama.

Indian actors Shabana Azmi and Sonam Kapoor will also be attending the film festival.