The UK Asian Film Festival returned to London for its 2026 edition with its celebration of another ten days of fabulous Asian cinema. A star-studden red carpet was rolled out to usher in the first film of the festival: Ghost School, directed by British-Pakistani filmmaker Seema Gul.
Despite the usual unpredictable British weather, the sun decided to show up for the occasion, making the atmosphere feel truly like a party. As actress Ainy Jaffri aptly said, “I feel like the weather is 24 degrees, so my summer dress is out!”. That bright, sunny vibe mirrored the smiles on every attendee’s face as they honored some of the best South Asian cinema shown on these shores.
Legendary actress Ayesha Omar was also in the house, celebrating her film, Mera Lyari, which focuses on female footballers in Karachi. It’ll be screened at the festival later this week. “We worked very hard on this film,” Amina told us, her excitement palpable. “The UK Asian Film Festival is such a combination of so many different genres of films and all kinds of people – [it’s a] really cool vibe.”
She was one of a multiude of celebrities hitting the red carpet to celebrate the opening film, Ghost School , a captivating piece from Pakistan. Jaffri shared her pride in the selection, noting, “It’s really nice to see a film from Pakistan opening the festival… it’s heartening”.
Ghost School tells the story of a young girl named Rabiya, who faces the closure of her village’s only school. As she investigates the credibility of supernatural rumours that are running riot throughout her community, the audience is drawn into a tale touching on the accessibility of education and the pursuit of learning in the face of societal and economic pressures.
The resilence and strength of younger generations is a strong theme this year, with director Abhay Punjabi reflecting on this through his own film, Pukham Pukai, which is also being shown during the festival.
“I’m super excited because I’ve come here from India for the first time, from Delhi,” he said, before reflecting on children’s cinema today. “[People should] make more children’s films. That’s where everything starts. It has to start at a young age if you want to create an impact or talk about love and friendship and togetherness. If it can reach younger audiences… there should be more and more diaspora children’s films.”
Alongside auteurs behind the camera such as Punjabi, the red carpet also hosted many other lesser-known heroes of cinema. Ayesha Baig, veteran hair and makeup artist, gushed, “I think this is amazing. I grew up on Bollywood and Lollywood, and I think it’s brilliant. Living in England, I mean, this place is the place to be! I have worked in films for the last 19 years… When you get invited to be here, it’s a privilege.”
As the red carpet started to clear and guests made their way into the auditorium, the energy was clear: hope and togetherness was the underlying message going into this year’s edition of the festival. If this vibrant and incandescent start is anything to go by, the rest of the festival promists to bring some of the most briliant and heartfelt Asian cinema you’ll see this year.
The UK Asian Film Festival runs until the 10th of May. More information can be found here.