New Delhi, April 27. (UNI): If at all any proof was needed for Indian cinema's increasing popularity in 'Hollywood's own backyard -the United States', this was it.

That Bollywood cinema, with its changing face, has come to occupy a pride of place on the US cinematic circuit was evident from the audience in the US giving the 'thumbs-up' to three of the films at the the third edition of the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles.

While Sanjay Leela Bhansali's 'Black', which was opening film at the five-day IFFLA, was screened to packed audiences, Bharatbala's 'Hari Om', the closing film at the IFFLA, received the audience prize for the best film.

Anurag Kashyap's 'Black Friday', a feature film about the investigations following the 1993 serial Bombay bomb blasts, which was screened at the IFFLA on April 22, was adjudged the Jury Grand Prize winner. Present at the screening of the film was the film's director Anurag Kashyap.

Announcing the prize for 'Black Friday', the jurors Mira Advani-Honeycutt, Cheng-Sim Lim and Peggy Rajski said, " this year's award goes to 'Black Friday' as the film displayed original storytelling, innovative cinematic technique and boldness of vision

in tackling a complicated social issue. It told a story with multiple and conflicting points of view and did it without ever being judgmental. The film commands admiration from us as filmgoers and human beings."

The prize in the documentary film category went to 'Whose Children Are These', directed by Theresa Thanjan . 'Hari Om' won the audience choice prize for best feature film, while the audience award for best documentary went to 'The New Heroes: India, With Robert Redford, Directed by Carl Byker and Mitch Wilson.