The whirlwind campaign to get Mumbai's world cinema extravaganza back on track has paid off. Starting today, the 16thMumbai Film Festival (MFF) will showcase 185 films from over 65 countries until October 21.

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A slew of celebrity promos and public contributions breathed new lease of life into a festival that was on the brink of demise. This second shot at survival has given organisers, Mumbai Academy of Moving Images (MAMI) more impetus to pull out all the stops for the curtain raiser.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan will be the guest of honour for the opening ceremony at Juhu's Chandan Cinema. The event, which will also be attended by Deepika Padukone and Akshay Kumar, will be hosted by Kalki Koechlin.

Veteran actresses Helen and her French counterpart Catherine Deneuve, will be conferred the lifetime achievement awards, followed by a screening of MFF's opening film Serena. The Bradley Cooper-Jennifer Lawrence starrer, helmed by Academy Award-winning Danish director Susanne Bier, is slated for a US release only in February 2015.

Noted Indian production designer and art director, Nitin Chandrakant Desai, has been brought on board to design the sets for the festival's opening ceremony. Vintage hand-painted posters of the 1949 blockbuster Andaz and Chetan Anand's Kinare Kinare, will also be showcased by film historian and archivist SMM Ausaja. "Andaz is iconic not only because it was the only time Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor and Nargis appeared together in a film, but also because it was a benchmark for production values back in the day," says Ausaja, explaining his choice of posters for the opening ceremony. "And Kinare Kinare, starring Dev Anand and Meena Kumari, is unique because unlike most vintage posters that had only faces or busts of the main leads, this one features both in full length," he concludes.Also joining hands with MFF is HBO South Asia, which will present the Master Class with Catherine Deneuve and the festival's creative director Anupama Chopra on October 15.Must watch films on Day One (October 15)Snow (Barf)Dir: Mehdi RehmaniVenue: PVR Andheri (Screen 5)Time: 10amTwo Days, One Night (Deux jours, une nuit)Dir: Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc DardenneVenue: Chandan Cinema, JuhuTime: 3pmRed Army (documentary)Dir: Gabe PolskyVenue: PVR Andheri (Screen 1)Time: 6pmChildren of WarDir: Mrityunjay DevvratVenue: Cinemax Versova (Screen 1)Time: 8:30pmAmma & AppaDir: Franziska Schönenberger, Jayakrishnan SubramanianVenue: Cinemax Versova (Screen 2)Time: 3:15pmThe Fort (Killa)Dir: Avinash ArunVenue: Cinemax Versova (Screen 3)Time: 6pmBoyhoodDir: Richard LinklaterVenue: Cinemax Versova (Screen 4)Time: 8:15pm