The 2025-26 edition of the Japanese Film Festival is set to take place in Kolkata from 23 to 25 January, the organisers announced on Wednesday.
Apart from the Kolkata, the festival will also be held in Delhi, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Kochi, Noida, Pune, Bengaluru and Ahmedabad.
“Announcing the official City Schedule for the Japanese Film Festival 2025–26! From Hyderabad to Kolkata, JFF is gearing up to travel across India with an exciting new season of Japanese cinema. Check the dates → Mark your calendars → And stay tuned for the film lineup,” the organisers wrote on Instagram.
Among this year’s lineup are: The 1988 anime classic Akira, the 2025 films Petals and Memories, Showtime 7, Sunset Sunrise, The Boy and the Dog, and 366 Days. 2024’s Angry Squad: The Civil Servant and the Seven Swindlers, Teasing Master Takagi-san live-action and 6 Lying University Students are also part of the films curated for the festival.
The film festival premiered in India in 2017. It toured in 7 cities back in 2019 for the first time. A curated line-up of 25 films were screened, which included films like Your Name, Shoplifters and Weathering with You.
The film festival celebrated the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between India and Japan in 2022. In that year, the festival focused on the works of filmmaker Makoto Shinkai, whose films were brought to the big screen in India after anime fans all over the country signed a petition in 2019. The festival went on to screen six feature films by Shinkai and also included the film versions of two RADWIMPS concerts.
After the reception of the Shinkai films in theatres, JFF brought the filmmaker’s latest film Suzume to the big screen in 2023 for anime fans in India.
The festival expanded to cities like Bengaluru, Mumbai, Pune, and Guwahati in 2024. They also collaborated with Mela! Mela! Anime Japan!! in Delhi for the first time last year for a lineup dedicated to anime films. They also hosted a special screening of the film Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Rama (English Version).
This year, too, the film festival is set to team up with Mela! Mela! Anime Japan!!, marking their second collaboration.