In a major moment for independent cinema in India, Shashank Walia’s Birds in the Dark (Hanere De Panchi) has won multiple honours at Busan. Winning the prestigious New Currents Award and the Songwon Vision Audience Award at the 31st Busan International Film Festival (BIFF), the film has received prize money totalling 30 million South Korean won.
The New Currents Award recognises debut directors while the Songwon Vision Audience Award is decided by audience votes. The double recognition marks a significant achievement for the Punjabi-language feature, following its World Premiere in the festival’s Vision section.
Shot in black and white and set in rural Punjab, Birds in the Dark features Mauli Singh, Sapna Das, Harwinder Singh Aujila, Navdeep Bajwa and Shahnawaz Bhat. The film explores the intersections of gender, caste, class, labour, justice and love, weaving a deeply human story from the social and emotional landscapes of its setting.
The film is produced by Reema Kaur for Two Black Squares, and Hansal Mehta and Sahil Saigal for True Story Films. Kaur has also edited the film.
A double win
Reflecting on the film’s double win, writer, director, cinematographer Walia said, “Receiving multiple awards for my debut feature is an ecstatic feeling. One celebrates the film as a new voice in Asian cinema, while the other tells us that its story has found a home in the hearts of people who may live thousands of miles away from the world we have depicted. For us, that’s the real power of cinema.”
Producer Hansal Mehta adds, “This is big! We are proud to help independent voices like Shashank’s and his beautifully rebellious film, travel the world. Shashank and Reema made Birds in the Dark on their own terms, in their own language, without bending it to fit a market. I believe every story, every storyteller and every cinematic voice has an audience. We want to help them find it. A jury award and an audience award at Busan tell us that the audience exists, far beyond Punjab.”
Founded in 1996, the Busan International Film Festival is one of Asia’s leading film festivals, known for championing emerging filmmakers, independent cinema and distinctive voices from across the region.