Bokshi, the highly anticipated directorial debut from Indian genre filmmaker Bhargav Saikia (Awakenings, The Black Cat), will make its world premiere at the renowned International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) in January 2025. This marks a milestone for Indian genre cinema, as Bokshi is one of the few independent Indian films to debut at a Top-Tier festival in recent years.
Read the film’s full synopsis below:
Bokshi follows Anahita, a young woman struggling with the trauma of her mother’s brutal disappearance. Finding solace in Shalini, her compassionate history teacher, Anahita joins an unconventional school excursion to a mysterious prehistoric site. There, she encounters ancient forces rooted in the region’s mythology that force her to confront her terrifying destiny. Bokshi is a chilling coming-of-age story that blends supernatural folklore with themes of ecology and female empowerment.
“It’s an honor to premiere Bokshi in Rotterdam, a festival celebrated for showcasing bold and original voices in global cinema,” said director Bhargav Saikia. “This film is deeply personal to me, blending my love for genre storytelling with the unique cultural heritage of the region where I’m from. I’m thrilled to share it with an international audience.”
Now, watch the film’s official teaser:
“Featuring a layered sound design, pastel tones, and full-blooded primary colors, Saikia’s film strikes a balance between emotional affect and spectacle, between character development and the elaboration of a complex lore,” says IFFR’s film reviewer Srikanth Srinivasan.
Shot over 80 days across remote Himalayan terrains, Bokshi was developed over five years and produced by Saikia’s Mumbai-based company, Lorien Motion Pictures.
Saikia directed and produced Bokshi from a script by Harsh Vaibhav. Cinematography by Siddharth Sivasankaran and A. Vasanth lensed with film, Advait Nemlekar scored it, and Himanshu Chutia Saikia served as editor.
Prasanna Bisht and Mansi Multani star in the film.
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