The 39th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) 2008 was inaugurated by Rekha on Saturday. Goa Governor S. S. Sidhu, Chief Minister Digambar Kamat and Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Anand Sharma attended the opening ceremony.

The 11-day festival will be showcasing nearly 200 Indian and foreign films from 12 countries. The festival opens with Peter Chan's "The Warlords", a Chinese war epic set in the 1860s.

Sixty foreign-language films and 80 Indian films along with Bollywood hits like "Jodhaa Akbar" and India's Oscar entry "Taare Zameen Par" will be showcased during the festival.

Government authorities along with the IFFI organizers have made tight security arrangements. The event has been given closed-circuit TV surveillance with help of more than 50 cameras installed at strategic locations. A Police Control Room has been set up at the old GMC building to provide round-the-clock security, while two CISF battalions have been deployed.

A first aid cell with a 24-hour back-up has also been set up. 150 armed police personnel have been deputed to guard the venues Kala Academy and Entertainment Society of Goa (ESG) Complex along with CID and special branch sleuths.

Superintendent of Police (Security) Tony Fernandes said, “We are not leaving anything to chance.”