Indian filmmaker Anuparna Roy just made history at the 82nd Venice Film Festival, snagging Best Director in the Orizzonti section. Yes, you heard that right, she’s the first from India to pull this off, and honestly, it’s about time.
When Julia Ducournau (the same one behind “Raw” and “Titane”) called her name, Anuparna walked up to the stage in a white saree, and you could just see how surreal it felt for her.
Anuparna Roy wins big at Venice Film Festival 2025
Her film, “Songs of Forgotten Trees,” is the one that did it. The movie dives into the lives of two migrant women in Mumbai—nothing flashy or over-the-top, just raw, real storytelling that clearly hit a nerve with the jury.
The Orizzonti section at Venice is all about spotlighting new voices and trends, so yeah, this was the perfect place for a debut like hers.
Anuparna Roy thanks Anurag Kashyap
In her acceptance speech, Anuparna didn’t hold back. She thanked her cast, her producer (who took a gamble on a project that didn’t fit the usual mold), and Anurag Kashyap, who backed the film right from the start. She even gave a shoutout to her 80-year-old gaffer, Debjit Banerjee, and dedicated the award to her hometown and everyone in her country.
But she didn’t stop at thank-yous. Anuparna used her moment on stage to talk about the crisis in Palestine, saying every child deserves peace and freedom, and wasn’t shy about the fact that her words might ruffle feathers back home.
“Songs of Forgotten Trees” stars Naaz Shaikh and Sumi Baghel, with Bibhanshu Rai, Romil Modi, and Ranjan Singh producing, and Anurag Kashyap as presenter. It’s indie cinema at its purest.
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