Directed and written by Rohan Parashuram Kanawade, the Marathi film Sabar Bonda has bagged the top honour at the celebrated Sundance Film Festival. The film won the World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic, according to an announcement on the film festival’s official Instagram page.
The jury for the World Cinema Dramatic Competition, which included journalist and film critic Ava Cahen, filmmaker Wanuri Kahiu, and Academy Award-winning actor Daniel Kaluuya, lauded the film and called it “the great modern love story”. In their citation, they shared: “To say it’s an honour to award this tender film is an understatement. We cried, we laughed, and we wished to be loved in the same way. It is exactly what the world needs right now. This authentic point of view opens the door to an intimate language we all understand. We feel the humming heartbeat of the main character’s inner life, and when it bursts, it wraps us with its sweetness.”
Sabar Bonda was the only Indian film nominated at this year’s festival. Last year, Shuchi Talati’s Girls Will Be Girls received the same honour, with lead actress Preeti Panigrahi earning the Special Jury Award for Acting.
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The film follows the story of Anand, a thirty-year-old from the city, who has returned to his village hometown following the death of his father. While observing a 10-day mourning period, he reconnects with his childhood friend Balya, as they explore their underlying romantic feeling for each other.
The film, a co-production between India, Canada and the United Kingdom, stars Bhushaan Manoj, Suraaj Suman, and Jayshri Jagtap.
