To Die a Frenchman
(2026; 80min; Tamil with English Subtitles)
Director/Producer/Cinematographer and Editor: Pankaj Rishi Kumar

In the crumbling neighbourhood of Ville Noir in Pondicherry, seventy-year-old Monsieur Mounissamy lives as a relic of a world that no longer exists. Each July 14th, (French National Day) he unfurls a flag mirroring the French tricolour, and sings in trembling, imperfect French—an anthem to a “Mother France” he believes could still reclaim him. He fights tirelessly for French citizenship and a tiny plot of Indian land but his life ends unexpectedly. His quiet rebellion looms like a haunting reflection on fractured identities and unhealed colonial wounds.

(Collaboration: Kriti Film Club)

Corbett's Trail
(2025;72 minutes; English)
Director: Tanmay Sahoo

In summer 2022, wildlife biologist Dr A.J.T. Johnsingh, accompanied by Dr G.S. Rawat and Dr Bivash Pandav, retraced Jim Corbett’s paths through Uttarakhand. The documentary Corbett’s Trail captures their journey, the region’s landscapes and communities, Corbett’s transformation from hunter to conservationist, and the enduring relationship between people and wilderness.

The director and some of the production team members will be present post screening for a Q and A
 

Oslo: A Tail of Promise
(2025; 86 mins.; English and Marathi with English subtitles; Documentary)
Director: Isha Pungaliya
With Pooja R. Bhale and Oslo Khanwalkar
Producers: John Abraham, Minnakshi Das and Amey Gosavi 
A moving true story about the bond between Pooja and Oslo, a Siberian Husky with a troubled past. Set against a journey from Pune to the Himalayas, the film weaves together experience of longing, loss, grief, love,and surrender, exploring how animals and nature can become sources of companionship.

Curandera: The Path from Tragedy to Truth
(2025; 37 minutes; English and Spanish with English Subtitles)
Director: Alexia Kraft de la Saulx

A powerful journey of healing, transformation and reconnection—following one woman’s extraordinary path from personal trauma to becoming a traditional Amazonian healer.

(Collaboration: Foundation for Universal Responsibility of His Holiness The Dalai Lama)
 

Book Discussion Group  

Rabindranath Tagore: The Myriad Minded Man.
By Krishna Dutta and Andrew Robinson (Rupa Publications, 2026)

Chair: Dr Ananya Vajpeyi, writer and academician.

Discussants: Prof Irfan Habib, author and historian and Reba Som, writer, academic, historian

POSTPONED!
Paswaar (Caress Me)
(2025; 39 mins.; Gujarati/Hindi with English subtitles)

Director: Shayar Gandhi

Producer: Kinjal Gajera
With Arvind Vaidya, Mamta Bhavsar

Official Selection at the Tasveer Film Festival and the Mumbai International Film Festival (MIFF) 2026

A poignant yet hopeful story about Dr Homi, an elderly, wealthy and childless Zoroastrian, and Lali, his devoted caregiver and cook. As Homi considers whether to leave his inheritance to his estranged nephew Jamshed or to Lali, the film explores an unlikely bond shaped by loneliness, affection, belonging and the human need for care.

This film-screening has been postponed due to unforeseen circumstances, the inconvenience is regretted

The director will be present for the post screening discussion
 

FEMINICHI FATHIMA (FEMINIST FATHIMA)
(2024; 99 minutes; Malayalam with English subtitles)
Director: Fasil Muhammed

With Shamla Hamza, Kumar Sunil, Akhil Nazim, Hanana Parveen, Pushpa Rajan.

Recipient of Best Malayalam Film, 72nd National Film Awards; Second Best Film, Best Actress and Best Debutant Director, Kerala State Film Awards; FIPRESCI, NETPAC and Jury Awards, 29th International Film Festival of Kerala

In a conservative Muslim family in Kerala, Fathima's determination to replace a worn-out mattress sets in motion an unexpected journey of self-discovery. Through her experiences, the film offers a sensitive reflection on women's agency, dignity and the quiet acts of resilience that challenge deeply entrenched social norms.

GONDHAL 
(2025; 120 minutes; Marathi with English subtitles)
Director: Santosh Davakhar

With Kishor Kadam, Ishita Deshmukh, Yogesh Sohoni, Suresh Vishwakarma, Nishad Bhoir

Recipient of Silver Peacock for Best Director, 56th International Film Festival of India; Official Selection – Golden Peacock Competition, 56th International Film Festival of India.

Set against the backdrop of a traditional overnight Gondhal ritual in rural Maharashtra, the film follows a young bride whose desperate bid for freedom sets in motion a tense and unsettling chain of events. Blending folklore, ritual and psychological suspense, Gondhal explores power, faith and desire, while offering a compelling portrait of the social realities that shape life in the region. Atmospheric and richly rooted in local tradition, the film transforms a culturally significant ritual into a gripping meditation on oppression, resistance and human resilience.

Outsider. Freud

(2025; 66 mins.; Hebrew, English, German & French with English subtitles)
Director: Yair Qedar

Recipient of the 2025 Gradiva Award for Best Documentary, Movie, or Play; Best Feature Documentary/Animation at the Jaipur International Film Festival (2025)

Blending documentary, animation and dream sequences, Outsider. Freud offers an intimate portrait of Sigmund Freud, exploring how his experiences as a Jewish outsider in Vienna shaped both his personal life and the development of psychoanalysis.

Two Poets and a River

(75 minutes; 2021; Wakhi,Tajik and Dari with English subtitles)
Director: Richard K. Wolf

Recipient of the ICTM Prize for Best Documentary Film or Video at the International Council for Traditional Music, Portugal (2022) and an Official Selection at the RAI Film Festival, Bristol, UK (2023).

Set along the Oxus River, which separates Tajikistan and Afghanistan, the film explores themes of love, loss and belonging through the lives and musical poetry of two renowned Wakhi poet-musicians, Qurbonsho and Daulatsho. Against the backdrop of a border shaped by history, the film reflects on shared cultural heritage, memory and identity through music.

Followed by a post screening discussion with film-maker, Prof. Richard K. Wolf, G. Gordon Watts Professor of Music and Professor of South Asian Studies, Harvard University. The session will be moderated by Shubha Chaudhuri, Associate Director General (Academic), Archives and Research Centre for Ethnomusicology, AIIS, Gurugram.

(Collaboration: American Institute of Indian Studies, Center for Art and Archaeology)