Indian Film Festival of Perth to bring more than 30 films, celebrated filmmakers and the richness of Indian storytelling to Western Australia

There are some stories that travel thousands of kilometres and still feel like home.

This November, Indian cinema will make a new journey across Australia—to Perth, where the inaugural Indian Film Festival of Perth (IFFP) will open a new chapter in the story of Indian cinema in Western Australia.

Running from November 12 to 15, 2026, the four-day festival will showcase more than 30 films across Indian and South Asian languages, bringing together cinema, filmmakers and audiences across multiple locations in Perth.

For a city with a growing connection to India, the festival promises more than four days of films. It creates a new meeting place for stories, cultures and people—an opportunity for Western Australian audiences to experience the extraordinary diversity of Indian and South Asian cinema.

A New Home for Indian Stories
The inaugural festival is the latest expansion of the team behind the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM) and the Indian Film Festival of Sydney, New South Wales (IFFS NSW).

After establishing platforms in Melbourne and Sydney, the move to Perth marks another step in taking Indian storytelling to audiences across Australia.
The festival was announced during Western Australian Premier Hon Roger Cook MLA’s visit to India, where he unveiled the initiative during his keynote address, highlighting the growing cultural and creative ties between India and Western Australia.

The inaugural edition will also welcome a select group of celebrated Indian filmmakers to Perth, adding a personal connection between the people who create these stories and the audiences who experience them.

Cinema as a Cultural Bridge
Welcoming the announcement, Western Australian Premier Hon Roger Cook MLA said the festival would showcase the breadth of Indian and South Asian cinema while giving visiting filmmakers an opportunity to experience Western Australian hospitality.

“I am pleased to announce the inaugural Indian Festival of Perth, which will take place across multiple locations in Perth from November 12th to November 15th this year. The festival will showcase more than 30 films across Indian and South Asian languages. And the inaugural festival will welcome a select group of celebrated Indian Filmmakers who will get to witness Western Australian hospitality and visit Perth Film Studio.”
It is a sentiment that captures what cinema can do at its best: cross borders without losing the identity of the people and cultures behind the stories.

“We Are Incredibly Excited”
For Mitu Bhowmick Lange AM, who is behind both the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne and Indian Film Festival of Sydney, the Perth edition represents a natural extension of the festival journey already established in Melbourne and Sydney.

“We are incredibly excited to bring Indian cinema to Perth for the very first time,” Lange said.
“The launch of the Indian Festival of Perth is a natural extension of what we have been building across Melbourne and Sydney, and it is wonderful to now create a platform for audiences in Western Australia to experience the incredible diversity of Indian and South Asian cinema.”

But the ambition goes beyond the screen.
Lange said the festival hopes to create meaningful connections between filmmakers, audiences and the wider creative community, while opening the door to new conversations and collaborations between India and Western Australia.

A New Chapter Begins
For Indian-Australians, cinema has always been more than entertainment. It can be memory, language, music, identity and a connection to a place many call home.
Now, Western Australia gets its own stage.
The launch of the Indian Film Festival of Perth strengthens the cultural bridge between India and Australia while creating a new platform for Indian storytelling in Western Australia. It also expands the footprint of Indian cinema across the country.

From November 12 to 15, Perth will become a new gathering place for Indian cinema and its audiences.
And as the lights go down and the first films begin to roll, a new story will quietly begin—not just on the screen, but between India, Western Australia and the people who call both places home.

G’day India