MUMBAI: The London Indian Film Festival opened recently with the UK-premiere of Anurag Kashyap‘s Gangs of Wasseypur.

"The London Indian Film Festival is lucky for me. My Dev D played in year one followed by the premiere of That Girl In Yellow Boots in year two and got UK distribution and now I‘ve opened the festival. It‘s a great platform," observed Kashyap.

Besides Kashyap, others prominent at the red carpet included actress Tannishtha Chatterjee and Ferena Wazeir. The celebrity wave continued with acclaimed British Asian actors Riz Ahmed (Trishna), Upen Patel (Namastey London) and Shiv Jhala (whose ‘Arjun and Alison‘ will enjoy its World Premiere at the festival on 30 June), walking the red carpet and obliging screaming fans with photo opportunities.

"We are delighted that this year‘s London Indian Film Festival has opened to such a tremendous response. We have a diverse range of events scheduled for the next two weeks, including the brilliant collaboration of director Q‘s Gandu Circus along with Susheela Raman and many World and UK film premieres," observed Festival Director Cary Sawhney.

Anushka Sharma, currently filming in London for Yash Chopra‘s next opposite Shah Rukh Khan, also attended the premiere. After the screening, Sharma promptly remarked, “ I enjoyed Gangs of Wasseypur enormously and am looking forward to working with Kashyap in Bombay Velvet.”

Also present were directors Asif Kapadia , Michael Winterbottom, Sidharth Sharma, Devanand Shanmugam and Sarovar Banka.