Richa Chadha and Ali Fazal, the dynamic actor-producer duo, have achieved a significant milestone with their debut production, Girls Will Be Girls. The film has secured a premiere slot at the prestigious Sundance Film Festival 2024, competing in the highly sought-after World Dramatic Feature category. This accomplishment is especially noteworthy for the couple’s first venture into film production.
Girls Will Be Girls emerged victorious from the thousands of submissions Sundance receives annually, solidifying its place among the 16 selected films in the competitive festival lineup. The film stands as one of the few Indian narrative features to attain such recognition at Sundance, emphasizing its exceptional status.
Directed by Shuchi Talati, Girls Will Be Girls unfolds a compelling narrative set in a boarding school in the Himalayan hills of northern India. The story revolves around Mira, a 16-year-old girl, whose rebellious journey intertwines with her mother’s unfulfilled coming-of-age experiences. Produced under the banner Pushing Buttons Studios, established by Richa Chadha and Ali Fazal in March 2021, the film features an ensemble cast, including Malayalam film actress Kani Kusruti, Jitin Gulati, and debutants Preeti Panigrahi and Kesav Binoy Kiron in lead roles.
Director Shuchi Talati expressed her delight, stating, “I am delighted that my first feature has been selected at the Mecca of cinema, Sundance.” She emphasized the film’s resonance across continents and its portrayal of a love story between a mother and a daughter deeply rooted in Indian ethos.
As an Indo-French official co-production involving Pushing Buttons Studios, Blink Digital, Crawling Angel Films, and Dolce Vita Films, Girls Will Be Girls marks a significant milestone in Indian cinema’s global reach. The film has already garnered international acclaim, securing grants such as Cinema Du Monde, the Arte Kino Prize, and the VFF Talent Highlight Award, and participating in the Berlinale Talents Project Market in 2022.
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