‘The Four Feathers’, yet another visual fiesta by Shekhar Kapur will be world premiering at 27th Toronto International Film Festival as a Gala presentation on Sunday, September 8 at the Roy Thomson Hall at 6:30 p.m.

Based on A.E.W. Mason's 1902 novel with the same title, ‘The Four Feathers’ follows Harry Feversham (Heath Ledger), a young British officer who resigns his post when his regiment is headed for active duty in North Africa. Following his move, his three friends and fiancée (Kate Hudson) present him with four white feathers, a symbol of cowardice. But Harry soon redeems his honor when he travels to Sudan alone to save his friends, who have fallen under brutal attack by Sudanese rebels.

Set in 1875, The Four Feathers is filmed against the austere beauty of the Moroccan desert as well as within the grand walls of English aristocracy. The star cast includes Heath Ledger, Wes Bentley, Kate Hudson, Djimon Hounsou and Michael Sheen.

Kapur synonymous with a distinct film making style and finesse will be on the red carpet along with such illustrious names as Dustin Hoffman, Sophia Loren and Pierce Brosnan at the fest.
Multi-faceted Shekhar first appeared in show biz as a riveting model, a chat show host and an actor. He created a mark for himself, as first a director, with Masoom (1983) and Mr. India. Controversial Bandit Queen (1994) got him fame among the international audiences. Elizabeth (1998) journeyed all the way to the Oscars raking seven nominations at the Academy Awards and Shekhar was nominated for Best Director at the Golden Globe Awards.

The Toronto International Film Festival from September 5-14 presents 345 films from 50 countries, including 265 features, of which 194 (74%) are world and North American premieres. Almost 55% (142) of the features are screened in a language other than English, and 56 films are feature debuts. There are a total of 18 gala presentations.

Some of the other gala films at the festival are: White Oleandar (director: Peter Kosminsky), The Good Thief (Neil Jordan), Jet Lag (Daniele Thompson), Far from Heaven (Todd Haynes), Spider (David Cronenberg), Phone Booth (Joel Schumacher) and 11'09'01 a film around the events of September 11th and their consequences.

The South Asian line-up includes films: A Peck on the Cheek, Directed by Mani Ratnam; Shadow Kill, Directed by Adoor Gopakrishnan; A Tale of a Naughty Girl, Directed by Buddhadeb Dasgupta; Bend It Like Beckham, Directed by Gurinder Chadha (UK).