"52 Blue", featuring Neha Dhupia and Adil Hussain, is set to open the London Film Festival on July 9.

The film is directed by Ali El Arabi and revolves around Ashish (Yadav Shashidhar), a young football fanatic who escapes his isolating life in Kochi, India, with the quiet support of his mother, to travel to the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar and meet his idol, Lionel Messi.

Dhupia will attend the premiere in London alongside her co-star Hussain and the ensemble cast of the film. The premiere is expected to draw international cinema lovers, industry veterans, and members of the South Asian film community from across the globe, according to a press release.

Dhupia said "52 BLUE" will always be a special film for her. "It marks my first international project, and to see it opening a festival as prestigious as the London Indian Film Festival feels surreal. As actors, we constantly seek stories that move us, challenge us, and stay with us long after the camera stops rolling, and this film did exactly that for me," she said in a statement.

"The response to the trailer has been deeply encouraging...To have our European premiere at the iconic BFI Southbank is a huge honour for the entire team. Sharing this moment with such talented co-actors like Adil Hussain and the rest of the cast makes it even more memorable. The association of someone as globally admired as Lionel Messi with the film has also brought an incredible spotlight to the project,' she added.

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