The International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) has attracted several top film-makers to this year's event, including Istvan Szabo, Mike Leigh, Miklos Jancso and Marco Muller.

The festival, to take place from March 31- April 7, has also been granted recognition by the Paris-based International Federation of Film Producers' Associations (FIAPF), the regulatory body for film festivals worldwide.

The Kerala festival will feature a competition section for Asian, Latin American and African films. About 4,000 delegates are expected to take part and almost 200 films will be screened.