Music director Ilaiyaraaja, who has composed for over 1000 films, received the ‘Best Musical Score’ award for the English-Australian feature film Love & Love Only at the International Film and Entertainment Festival Australia (IFEFA) this year. Directed by Julian Karikalan, Love & Love Only is about the relationship between an Indian student in Australia and a local classmate. This is the first time that Ilaiyaraaja has composed for an English film. Ilaiyaraaja shares the award with Mudasir Ali, for Four Pillars of Basement, an Indian film.
In an interview with the Vijayawada Chronicle, director Julian Karikalan said he had documented the entire process of working with Ilaiyaraaja. Love & Love Only, which stars Rohit Kalia, Georgia Nicolas, Shekhar Mehta, and Ambika Asthana, is expected to release later this month.
IFEFA is an international film festival that celebrates world cinema in the Southern hemisphere. With a focus on artistic content, the IFEFA awards are judged on the basis of originality and creativity. The festival attempts to “nurture, encourage, inspire and intrigue the cinematic experience of the diverse communities of Australia”.