Acclaimed Indian filmmaker Saurav Rai is set to present his new project “Lanka” at this year’s Hong Kong — Asia Film Financing Forum (HAF), the project market running alongside Hong Kong FilMart.
The Hindi-language drama follows 12-year-old Shiv, who faces bullying due to his family’s old van used for school transportation. When the vehicle breaks down, his father, Krishna, decides to buy a new one but lacks sufficient funds, leading to desperate measures. Separately, a karate match between Shiv and his friend Simon ends with an injury, sparking a bitter feud between the two families that gradually escalates into a psychological war of revenge.
“Filmmaking for me is largely a medium to express and relive whatever I feel is important, human and necessary to share,” said Rai. “This story became more important as I became a father a year ago. The guilt which was there from my childhood became even more pronounced when I started experiencing the growth of my own son.”
In this project, Rai delves into several significant themes such as guilt, parenthood, class disparity, and vengeance. He traces these themes back to his childhood when he inadvertently harmed a friend during a martial arts session. Specifically, Rai found himself breaking a trust as he had agreed to go easy on his friend during their sparring match, but instead ended up severely beating him to gain the approval of their master.
Rai’s past projects encompass “Guras” (released in 2023), a film that made its debut at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival and received the Proxima Special Jury Prize. Additionally, his first full-length production, “Nimtoh,” was initially showcased at the International Film Festival Rotterdam and was awarded the grand jury prize at MAMI Mumbai Film Festival upon its premiere in 2019.
Co-producer Ankita Purkayastha, a sound designer whose credits include Amazon Prime’s “Panchayat” and Netflix’s “Kota Factory 2,” said their production company Neonate has been involved with Rai’s films since his debut. “The fact that we came on board as the producer for ‘Nimtoh’ and ‘Guras’ was simply out of sheer shared passion.”
According to co-producer Viraj Selot (Rotterdam selection “Joram”), the team has secured approximately one-quarter of the $1.1 million budget. “The budget perhaps will change once the principal character’s fees are decided, as we are in talks with some of the mainstream actors from India,” Selot noted.
At HAF, the producers hope to find international partners. “We are open to co-produce the film with both European and Asian forces, as the story is universal,” said Selot. “The struggles attached to parenting irrespective of the class or sociological differences and the basic need of human compassion rings true globally.”
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2025-03-18 02:56