Visitors to the Delhi International Film Festival (DIFF) early next month may get a rare peek into one of the world’s most insulated – and isolated – societies. North Korea, along with Russia, will be a “country partner” of the 15th edition of the festival to be held from May 4 to 8.Organisers of DIFF said they were in talks to include a selection of North Korean films in the festival. While final approvals are still awaited, among the films that could be screened is 72 Sigan (72 Hours). The film, according to its IMDb listing, has been written by North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un himself.The festival will be held in collaboration with Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) under the Union Ministry of Culture. The Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting is a “key player” in organising the festival, the DIFF website says.DIFF is different from the International Film Festival Delhi (IFFD), the inaugural edition of which was held at Bharat Mandapam from March 25-31 this year.Around 175 films from more than 60 countries will be showcased at the five-day festival, the organisers of DIFF said. Screenings and discussions, in which filmmakers, artists, and audiences will participate, will be held at IGNCA and Dr Ambedkar International Centre in the heart of New Delhi.According to reports, 72 Sigan, a film about the first three days of the Korean War that opened in theatres in North Korea in February 2024, reiterates the North Korean narrative that the war was begun by the South.Historians of the Korean War generally agree that the war started after Kim Il-sung, the founder of North Korea and grandfather of Kim Jong-un, invaded South Korea with the help and support of the Soviets.Story continues below this adAccording to a report by Radio Free Asia, the American state-funded nonprofit, 72 Sigan was banned in North Korea five months after its release without reason. But it was re-released on North Korean state TV in January 2025, The Chosun Daily of South Korea reported.Both Kim Il-sung and his son and successor Kim Jong-il were reputed to be cinephiles. All North Korean films are produced under the supervision of the Korean Workers’ Party led by the Kim dynasty. The Korean Art Film Studio, run by the North Korean government in the capital Pyongyang, is the country’s biggest film studio.Another North Korean film that DIFF organisers hope to get is Days and Nights of Confrontation, which is said to be based loosely on the 2004 Ryongchon station explosion. This 2025 film is a sequel to One Day, One Night (2022), which is about a 1950s plot to assassinate Kim Il-sung.A few episodes of the popular children’s animated TV show Boy General could also be screened, the organisers said. The 100-part series, the first and last episodes of which were aired in 1982 and 2019 respectively, chronicles the bravery of a boy warrior from the Korean Goryeo kingdom (918-1392 CE).Story continues below this ad“The film festival is being organised in collaboration with the I&B Ministry, but the proposal to make North Korea a country partner is still awaiting the ministry’s approval,” a Culture Ministry official said.“IGNCA is simply the venue provider, and all events are subject to the Ministry’s approval,” the official added.Asked why North Korea – officially the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea or DPRK – was chosen, the official said, “There is no reason as such. Indian audiences have never seen North Korean movies… We (India) also have diplomatic relations with Pyongyang. North Korea is proposed to be a country partner. Russia, China, and Mozambique have already been approved.”DIFF founder president Ram Kishore Parcha said, “We are unannounced ambassadors of our country and we bridge relations [among countries] through cinema.” China and Russia have “civilisational ties” with India, Parcha said.Story continues below this adThe 2026 edition of DIFF will be inaugurated by the acclaimed Malayalam filmmaker Adoor Gopalakrishnan, and will have a section to mark the birth centenary year of the legendary Bengali actor Uttam Kumar, Parcha said. Puratwan (The Ancient), Rituparna Sengupta’s 2025 Bengali-language film starring Sharmila Tagore, will be screened at the festival.The festival will honour the Moroccan filmmaker Mohamed Ahed Bensouda with a screening of his 2023 film The Divorcees of Casablanca. Bangladeshi singer Runa Laila will receive the Minar-e-Delhi Award, while veteran Indian performer Usha Uthup will be presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award, the organisers said.