Kirti Kulhari's 'Kinaare' to Premiere at 15th Dharamshala Film Festival

The 15th Dharamshala International Film Festival runs Oct. 29 to Nov. 9. Organizers confirmed a 14-title slate spanning seven countries. The lineup pairs Berlin-honored work with first-time producers.

What opens the festival?

Rima Das' "Not a Hero," an India-Singapore co-production, screens as the opening night film. The film earned a Crystal Bear Special Mention at the Berlinale earlier this year. It later won best indie film at the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne.

The film follows a city boy sent to his ancestral village. There he meets a distant aunt, befriends a horse and joins local children. He finds both a life away from screens and a courage he did not know he had.

Das is known for "Village Rockstars," "Bulbul Can Sing" and "Tora's Husband." Her films have screened at more than 150 festivals. They have collected over 75 awards, according to DIFF's program notes.

What is Kirti Kulhari producing?

"Kinaare" ("Shores") marks Kulhari's first feature as a producer. She plays Amina, a single woman tending her elderly parents near Delhi. Her cousin, played by Azam Quadri, returns after 15 years away.

Akbar Quadri and Azam Quadri wrote and directed. Rajeev Siddhartha, Alka Amin and Ravi Taneja complete the cast. The film traces how the cousin's visit resurfaces the events that once split the family. By the time he leaves, Amina has made her peace with the past.

Kulhari produced through her Kintsukuroi Films banner. Co-producers are Abhishek Koka and Maansi Guptey. The crew includes cinematographer Arjun Sundaram, composer Mohan Kannan, editor Bakul Matiyani and sound designer Sanjay Chaturvedi.

"It's a script that really resonated with me. It's a simple, heartwarming, and subtle film. I find all these adjectives in Iranian films – which I've always really loved – so when something like this came to me, I knew I had to make it," Kulhari said. "This is exactly how I wanted to make this film: independently, make it the way I see it, the way we all see it collectively."

Siddhartha added: "And with 'Kinaare,' I got to do that as an actor. I feel 'Kinaare' has such a universal theme that everybody who sees it will definitely be touched, be moved and be slightly changed from within after the experience."

What films joined the latest wave?

Don Palathara's "The Uncertainty Principle" tracks young cinema aspirants in Kochi. Shilpi Gulati co-directed "Cool Ladies Club" with 10 women from Mumbai's eastern suburbs. The documentary took 18 months to make.

Tanushree Das and Saumyananda Sahi's "Shadowbox" is a Berlin-debuting family drama set in Kolkata. Rafael Kapelinski's "Budapest Diaries" is a Poland-Hungary entry. Eimi Imanishi's "Nomad Shadow" plays Western Sahara.

What anchors the festival's first wave?

Gurvinder Singh's Locarno title "Rehmat" weaves three stories set in present-day Punjab. Oscar-nominated documentarian Shaunak Sen debuts in fiction with "Termite," a short set in 1990s Old Delhi.

Oliver Laxe contributes "Sirāt," winner at Cannes. Sompot Chidgasornpongse's Thai pilgrimage drama "9 Temples to Heaven" debuted at Cannes. Sara Dosa's Iceland-set "Time and Water" extends the festival's geographic reach.

R. Gowtham's "Members of the Problematic Family" bowed in Berlin. Dennis Harvey and Lars Lovén directed the Irish folk documentary "Celtic Utopia." Samreen Farooqui and Shabani Hassanwalia's "The Ordinary Star" follows Nawazuddin Siddiqui studying the occupant of the real room he used during Dibakar Banerjee's 2013 segment "Bombay Talkies."

Where do screenings take place?

DIFF runs Oct. 29 to Nov. 1 at the Tibetan Children's Village in Upper Dharamshala. An online edition follows Nov. 2 to Nov. 9. Filmmakers Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam co-founded the festival.

Seven fellows join this year's mentorship program. Mentors include Bhutanese director Dechen Roder, Umesh Kulkarni and Dominic Sangma. Three filmmakers will guide seven emerging artists over the in-person run.

DIFF's 15th edition opens Oct. 29 with a film that took honors at Berlin and Melbourne. The 12-day program pairs Das' international breakout with Kulhari's independent production debut across 14 titles from seven countries.