Toronto: Sunday, a sold-out crowd at the Toronto International Film Festival flocked to see the first ever Indian film to have a gala there, as well as the panel featuring director Karan Johar and some of India's biggest stars.

Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna made its debut at about 1:30 p.m. on Sunday afternoon at Roy Thompson Hall, after which its all-star lineup joined Johar on the stage for a conversation moderated by writer Suketu Mehta.

Thom Powers, a writer and producer in charge of TIFF's Real to Reel and Mavericks lineups, said he is hoping the panel will introduce Indian Cinema to a wider audience.

"One of the things we try to do in Mavericks is put a frame around some of the most interesting people in world cinema and create an opportunity to open up the work they do to a larger conversation," he told the CBC.

"And this seems possibly like a once-in-a-lifetime chance in Toronto to have Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan and Karan Johar here."

Power said it was fortunate that Mehta, who divides his time between New York and Mumbai was available to moderate.

"We wanted to find the right moderator who could help bridge the world of Bollywood and bring it to western audiences who maybe are not that familiar with Indian Cinema. We thought that perfect person for that was the writer Suketu Mehta, who wrote the book Maximum City about [Mumbai]," Powers said. Maximum City was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize.

The stars drew huge crowds of local Indian Cinema followers outside Roy Thompson Hall which erupted into ear-splitting cheers as the stars arrived.

Before the panel, Powers said he expected it to be "absolute madness", he also said he hoped it would open the eyes of film fans who have not yet taken Indian Cinema seriously.

"There's obviously going to be a lot of people there [in the audience] who are huge fans and who know all the work," he said.

"But there's a lot of people in the West for whom this incredibly vibrant cinema in India is unknown. It's a cinema that has all of its own vernacular and a style all to its own."

At the press conference prior to the screening of KANK, Shah Rukh Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, Karan Johar spoke to the press about Indian Cinema's position in the global context.

Both Karan and Shah Rukh Khan stressed that it is crucial for Indian Cinema to constantly participate in international film festivals in order to further itself on the global stage.

Karan said: "I do not come to a major international platform like this because of any immediate commercial reason. Whether I am in Toronto or in Cannes, my primary intention is to sensitise the world not just to my own film but to Indian cinema as a whole.

"We have a unique format of storytelling and we should be proud of it. But it is always a good idea to look for global exposure for the beautiful movies that we make," said the highly successful director.

Shah Rukh said: "I have been to a few international film festivals. It is not enough to merely take a particular film to a global audience. It is important for us to explain to the market why Bollywood films continue to thrive despite growing competition from Hollywood.

"Conversely, we should also try and understand how global producers, distributors and exhibitors operate and tell them that we are ready to do business with them."

However, Karan and Shah Rukh both insist that Hindi Cinema must not sacrifice its internationally recognised USP - the beautifully visual song and dance numbers and high drama-driven narrative style.

"We should find our place in the world without sacrificing our intrinsic character," Shah Rukh asserted.