National award winning internationally acclaimed actor Anupam Kher and his acting school 'Actor Prepares' will sponsor top prizes at this year's 'KASHISH Mumbai International Queer Film Festival'. The actor has announced that cash prizes of Rs 30,000 will go to the Best Narrative Feature Film, Rs 20,000 to the Best Indian Short Film and Rs 20,000 to the Best Actor in a leading Role award.

The awards will be announced at the closing ceremony of the ninth edition of KASHISH 2018 on May 27, 2018 at Liberty Carnival Cinemas. The cash awards were instituted by Anupam Kher in 2013.

"Actor Prepares is happy to collaborate with KASHISH for the fifth consecutive year. Good cinema is Art, it is entertainment, it is also a medium for social change. It is important that independent filmmakers who work with limited budgets and little resources with the sole focus to make good cinema be encouraged," said the actor. 

"We are honoured that Anupam Kher has decided to continue to support KASHISH for the fifth year in a row. Every year at KASHISH the competition is getting fiercer and stakes are getting higher. With the highest cash awards for LGBTQ films in India, KASHISH paves the way to nurture and encourage independent filmmaking," said Sridhar Rangayan, Festival Director.

Around 47 films will compete for awards at KASHISH 2018 and the festival will hand out cash prizes of Rs 2.65 lakhs in eight film categories and for the best poster design.

The Narrative Jury comprising actors Tara Deshpande, Jayati Bhatia and Sid Makkar will judge the films in the three categories - Best Narrative Film, Best Indian Narrative Short Film and Best Performance in a Lead Role. 

Besides sponsoring the awards, Actor Prepares will also hold an Acting Workshop which will include practicals on the techniques that actors use, understanding and channeling emotions, use of voice and speech, body language and finally the application of all of it in elaborate scene work which will be video recorded and given over to the participants.

The workshop is designed in a manner that emphasizes the philosophy of Acting can be Learnt, Taught and Perfected. The workshops are meticulously designed by Chairman and Mentor Mr. Anupam Kher who draws from his experience of working in over 500 films and 100 plays.