Amitabh salutes those working behind scenes

Amitabh salutes those working behind scenesKOLKATA: Amid showbiz greats including Shah Rukh Khan and Iranian director Majid Majidi, Amitabh Bachchan inaugurated the 24th Kolkata international Film Festival, delivering a stirring speech saluting those working behind the scenes.
The Kolkata International film festival 2018 (KIFF) kick-started with who’s who of Bollywood in attendance at the Netaji Indoor stadium as West
Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee inaugurated the prestigious film festival. Bengali film industry’s big names like Soumitra Chatterjee, Prosenjit Chatterjee, Rituparna Sengupta, Dev, Abir Chatterjee, Srijit Mukherji and others shared the stage with Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Mahesh Bhatt and it was an evening to remember.
A lively and cheerful crowd of over ten thousand was present at the Netaji Indoor stadium, where the inaugural show was a heady brew of glamour, glitz, nostalgia, fun and some serious talk on cinema.
Bachchan, who has been inaugurating the fest over the last few years, did the honours this time as well by lighting the lamp. Leading Bengali actress Rituparna Sengupta was the ‘thali girl’.
With the festival this year celebrating 100 years of Bengali cinema, Bengali film legends from different eras like Soumitra Chatterjee, Madhabi Mukhopadyay, Sabitri Chatterjee, Biswajit Chatterjee and Ranjit Mallick were seated at the dais.
A directory on 100 years of Bangla cinema, put together by the state’s Information and Cultural Affairs Department, was released by Bachchan during the function.
Bachchan said filmmaking was a team effort, where every member, big or small, had a key role to play. Agencies