Bradford's Bite the Mango Festival looks set to taste sweet success as the opening gala got off to a flying start with salsa, martial arts and music.

Some of the biggest names in South Asian cinema gathered at the National Museum of Photography, Film and Television to celebrate the opening night of the annual world cinema festival, which is now in its tenth year.

Acclaimed actor Om Puri, star of East is East, was guest of honour at last night's gala event.

The actor filmed My Son the Fanatic and Brothers in Trouble in Bradford and was a guest at the festival four years ago.

He said it was very nice to be back in Bradford and he loved the town.

He added: "Bite the Mango is a very warm and friendly festival to be at.

"It is such a good idea to give people the chance to see films from all over the world."

Also there were Bollywood director Mahesh Bhatt and Pakistani actress and film maker Samina Peerzada.

They first met at the festival in 1998 and have returned to help mark its tenth anniversary and hold a masterclass for budding film makers.

Mrs Peerzada said: "The festival has grown a lot since I was last here and I am hoping I'll be able to find a writer to collaborate with during the masterclass."

Canadian film maker Hina Khan was also at last night's event.

The UK premiere of her award-winning documentary Jihad: Struggling With Islam, will be shown tonight.

Music was supplied by local band Sweetblood who met as a result of a Bradford Moor-based arts and music project, Integrity Beatz.

They are signed with major record label Chrysalis Records and say their sound is like Led Zeppelin meets Talvin Singh.

Manager Mohsin Sheikh said: "The band had a wonderful and overwhelming time performing in its home town alongside the other distinguished guests."

The festival runs until September 30 and will include screenings of films from 20 countries, with the focus this year on China.

There will be screenings of five films representing the Chinese film industry - including the movie Hero, which has recently topped the American box office charts and stars martial arts superstar Jet Li.

Other premieres include the controversial Camp X-Ray: Ghosts of Guantanamo by Manish Patel; award-winning documentary Arna's Children by Dannel Dannel; and South Korean thriller Sword in the Moon, showing as part of a look at Samurai films.

The closing gala will feature a talk by Bollywood Legend Dilip Kumar and a screening of one of his films.