Tanmaya Shekhar, a young filmmaker from IIT Kanpur, is currently promoting his debut feature film Nukkad Naatak - a heart-warming coming-of-age story garnering significant praise at various national and international film festivals.

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In an exclusive conversation with WION, Shekhar, an economics graduate from one of the prestigious colleges in India, opened up about his movie Nukkad Naatak, his dreams as a director, challenges as an independent filmmaker, and much more. 

Read excerpts from the interview here:

WION: Congratulations! Your film Nukkad Naatak is receiving a lot of praise at film festivals. Since this is your directorial debut, can you tell us more about the film and how you came up with the idea?

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Tanmaya: I was visiting my parents during Diwali three years ago, and my mom took me to the Basti where she had been teaching for a year. It was an eye-opening moment for me. My father was an IIT professor, and I had been a student at IIT. This place was only eight kilometres from the campus, but it felt like another universe. The poverty was extreme, and it shook me how we could have such vastly different worlds right next to each other—an elite college next to an impoverished slum. Two Indias within one India.

Slowly, as I spent a few weeks visiting the Basti and befriending the locals, a germ of an idea started to form in my head. The film's foundation would be a story of two students at an elite college who share my perspective on life but are suddenly forced to interact with people in this basti—to work with them, understand them, and engage with their lives.

WION: As an independent filmmaker, what are some of the biggest challenges you face while making a film?

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Tanmaya: The biggest challenge is raising money to make a film. Films are such an expensive medium that the budget of a small film—1-2 crores—is more money than most people would ever see in their lives. So raising money for a film with a first-time director, first-time actors, and uncertain commercial prospects is very challenging. When we reach out to producers, the first question is: "What’s your plan for returning our money?"

The second challenge is getting the film seen. Even after you overcome all the hurdles and somehow manage to get the film made, it’s just sitting on your hard drive. More than 1,000 independent films are made every year in India, and more than 90 per cent of them never reach the public. What platforms are taking independent films, and how well are they marketing these films? That’s a problem that needs to be solved.

WION: Film festivals are a great platform for emerging filmmakers like you. How do these festivals help promote your film?

Tanmaya: We’re already seeing that Indian films that premiered in top-tier international film festivals, like All We Imagine as Light and Girls Will Be Girls, have generated so much buzz. They have achieved that sweet balance between critical acclaim and commercial viability.

As for me and Nukkad Naatak, our journey has just started, so I’ll be able to answer this question better in about six months. I hope that it helps audiences discover the film, me as a director, and our wonderful leads—Molshri, Shivang—and the amazing crew that pulled together to make this film.

WION: What are your dreams and plans for Nukkad Naatak?

Tanmaya: The Kolkata International Film Festival has made me optimistic about the future. We’ve figured out our target demographic—it’s young people and senior citizens. These were the two groups that reacted most strongly to the film.

We hope that it lands on a streaming platform like Netflix or Amazon so that it can be viewed widely. I honestly think it has the potential to be as successful as Laapataa Ladies. But the reality is that independent films, especially smaller Hindi films, are struggling in today’s market. So we are looking for more established producers to come on board and give the film a higher profile. Our dream producer would be Aamir Khan, as it’s exactly the kind of film he likes to make—heartwarming films with social commentary.

WION: Lastly, tell us a bit about yourself. Where did your love for filmmaking begin, and what other creative pursuits are you involved in apart from directing?

Tanmaya: My parents are huge film buffs and have been taking me to the cinema since I was a year old. I’ve been told that the first time I used a restroom outside our home was in a cinema [laughs]. However, it wasn’t until much later in life, after I graduated from IIT and was working my first job in the US, that I recognised filmmaking is something anyone can pursue. It’s not a genetic thing; it’s not reserved for film families. Anyone can pick up a pen and a camera and just do it.

That was my Eureka moment. So, I quit my job, moved back to India, and went for it.