Special screening of 'Gandhi' at Abu Dhabi film fest

Dubai, Oct 8 (IANS) A special screening of Richard Attenborough's Academy Award-winning movie "Gandhi" will be held at the Middle Eastern International Film Festival (MEIFF) 2008 in Abu Dhabi Saturday.

Actor Ben Kingsley, who won the Oscar for best actor for his portrayal of Mahatma Gandhi in the film, will attend the special screening at the Emirates Palace Hotel, according to a MEIFF statement.

The film has been dubbed into Arabic and will have its first local premiere at an international film festival in this region.

Apart from Kingsley's award, Attenborough's film won seven Oscars in 1983, including those for best picture and best director.

"As the principle organiser of MEIFF 2008, one of our intrinsic values is the celebration of culture," said Mohamed Khalaf Al Mazrouei, vice-chairman of MEIFF and director general of The Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH).

MEIFF, which in its second edition this year, is a project of ADACH.

Over 60 films from 32 countries will take part in the official competition this year. In all, 138 films from across the world will be screened in this year's festival, up from 80 films in MEIFF's inaugural edition in 2007.

Apart from Kingsley, Hollywood actors Antonio Banderas and Melanie Griffith and a host of artistes from the Arab film world will also attend this year's event, which will be held Oct 10-19.

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