Chicago South Asian Film Festival — Sept. 20–23, 2012

The Chicago South Asian Film Festival returns for its third annual edition this Thursday, September 20, running through Sunday, September 23 — the only South Asian film festival in the Midwest, and one of the most important showcases of independent South Asian cinema in North America.

This year's lineup is ambitious: 24 films — features, documentaries, and shorts — across four days at Showplace Icon Theaters in the South Loop and Film Row Cinema at Columbia College Chicago, including 5 world premieres, 8 U.S. premieres, and 11 Chicago premieres.

The festival opens Thursday night with a star-studded red carpet reception followed by the North American premiere of Madhur Bhandarkar's much-anticipated Heroine, starring Kareena Kapoor — a behind-the-scenes look at the glitz and grind of Bollywood stardom. Walking the red carpet: acclaimed actors Farooq Shaikh, Lillete Dubey, and Adil Hussain (of English Vinglish), along with poet-lyricist Javed Akhtar, who joins a post-screening discussion of the film.

The centerpiece is the world premiere of Listen Amaya, the debut feature of director Avinash Kumar Singh, reuniting the beloved pairing of Farooq Shaikh and Deepti Naval in the story of a daughter, her widowed mother, and the unexpected romance that unsettles them both. Closing the festival is another world premiere: Shobhna's 7 Nights, the comeback film of Raveena Tandon, who attends in person.

Also on the slate: Lessons in Forgetting, based on Anita Nair's acclaimed novel (Adil Hussain earned a standing ovation for his performance), and Jalpari — both chosen by the festival's programming committee, headed by programming director Mili Ghosh, for their treatment of female feticide in India. Panels, filmmaker Q&As, and post-screening discussions run throughout the weekend.

For Chicago's South Asian community and the city's cinephiles alike, four days of cinema that commercial theaters rarely show. Tickets and the full schedule at csaff.org.