"Fashion", Madhur Bhandarkar's film set in the glamorous but ruthless world of haute couture, is slated for its world premiere Oct 24 during the week-long 5th South Asian International Film Festival (SAIFF) here.

Nandita Das' "Firaaq", also from India, is the opening night feature of the festival and Das starrer "Ramchand Pakistani" directed by Mehreen Jabbar is the closing film. The festival runs Oct 22-28.

SAIFF 2008 will present a select combination of full-length films, shorts and documentaries in a variety of genres.

With several screening locations in Manhattan and high-profile sponsors like HBO, the New York Times and Time Warner Cable, the festival is dedicated to supporting established and emerging filmmakers from India, Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, as well as the South Asian diaspora.

"Fashion", starring Priyanka Chopra, Kangana Ranaut and Raj Babbar explores the world of style through the emotional journeys of the key people that make up the industry -models, designers, photographers, agencies and businessmen.

"Firaaq", which premiered last month at the Toronto International Film Festival, takes place over a 24-hour period one month after the 2002 communal violence in Gujarat. It features a star studded ensemble portraying the emotional journeys of "ordinary people" - some victims, some perpetrators and some who watched silently.

"Ramchand Pakistani" is a true story from 2002 concerning the accidental crossing of the Pakistan-Indian border during a period of extreme, war-like tension between the two countries by two members of a Pakistani Hindu family belonging to the Dalit caste. Nandita Das is the only non-Pakistani in the film's cast.