[category]
[title]
Public passes for the Dharamshala International Film Festival (DIFF) go on sale tomorrow, September 22, at 10.30am. Given this morning drop, it might be worth covering your cubicle up and using your work computer to book. Keep an eye out on their Instagram for the link. And in the meantime, if you're early enough, snag a spot on their website's mailing list and get early access to tickets.
The DIFF’s arguably one of the biggest film festivals in the country. It's marking its 15th edition this year, running from October 29 to November 1 at the Tibetan Children's Village (TCV) in Upper Dharamshala.
What is DIFF?
Founded in 2012 by filmmakers Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam, DIFF has built its reputation on staying small on purpose. They have a line-up of Indian and international independent cinema, screened across four venues on the TCV campus: Hermann Gmeiner Hall, Dekyi Tsering Hall, and the two PictureTime screens set up on the basketball court and football ground. In short: features, documentaries, shorts, and the odd genre curveball, alongside panel discussions, workshops, and filmmaker Q&As through the day, straight from around 9am to 9pm.
Worth knowing before you buy: passes aren't transferable once purchased, there's no reserved seating (Special Delegate and Supporter passholders get priority queuing, though), A handful of day passes are sometimes sold at the venue for local attendees, but don't count on it.
What to know before travelling to DIFF
Getting there: The nearest airport to DIFF is Kangra (Gaggal), about 13km from Dharamshala and roughly 50 minutes by taxi to McLeod Ganj Square. Flights connect from Delhi, Chandigarh and Kullu, though they're limited and can spike in price.
Amritsar (about 5 hours by road) and Chandigarh (6.5 hours) airports are also options. By train, the closest stations are Amb Andaura and Pathankot (roughly 3-3.5 hours away by taxi).
By road, it's a 10-11 hour overnight Volvo from Delhi (about 470km), or 2 hours from Pathankot, with Jalandhar and Amritsar also well-served by buses and taxis.
Once you're there: TCV, Upper Dharamshala is the venue for DIFF, just type it into Google Maps. It's close to Naddi, Dharamkot, McLeod Ganj town and Bhagsu Nag, all under 5km away. The DIFF organisers also note that there's no parking inside the TCV campus itself, only some spots within 500m near Dal Lake and along Satobari Road, and availability isn't guaranteed. It’s best to take an auto, taxi or shared jeep from McLeod Ganj instead (10-15 minutes) or from the Dal Lake taxi stand, which is walking distance from the venue.
A few more notes: TCV is a functioning residential school, so smoking isn't allowed anywhere on campus. The venue sits across fairly hilly terrain, so if you need accessibility assistance, it's worth emailing DIFF ahead of time rather than figuring it out on the day.
A bonus: DIFF On The Road this September 2026
Arthshila, a platform for the arts, is helping programme DIFF On The Road – which incidentally is coming much sooner. On September 25, films will be screened at the Arthshila venues in Ahmedabad, Patna, and Santiniketan, and on October 9 at Arthshila Goa.
The films screened as part of this programme include:
Moti, directed by Yash Saraf
Landscapes of Longing, directed by Alisha Tejpal, Mireya Martinez, and Anoushka Mirchandani
Warm Shadows, directed by Aakash Chhabra
Bleat!, directed by Ananth Subramaniam.
Visit the links in the bios of the Instagram accounts of each venue to book. You can find them all here.