India's official Oscar entry, Gondhal, a Marathi folk-thriller, is set for a pan-India release on November 13 in six languages. Directed by Santosh Davakhar, the film explores obsession and betrayal through a sacred ritual, promising a gripping cinematic experience.
Following its selection as India’s official entry for the 99th Academy Awards, Marathi folk-thriller Gondhal is gearing up for a grand pan-India theatrical release.
Directed by Santosh Davakhar, the film will release across the country in Marathi, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada on November 13. Gondhal was named as India’s official entry for the Academy Awards by the Film Federation of India (FFI) last month from a list of 33 films submitted for consideration this year.
The film's technical and artistic crew brings together renowned composer Ilaiyaraaja as the music director and Amalendu Chaudhary as the cinematographer.
Davakhar expressed pride in bringing an authentic regional story to a nationwide audience ahead of its Oscar race in the Best International Feature Film category.
"When we set out to make the film, our only goal was to stay fiercely true to the raw culture, haunting rhythms, and untold layers of our soil. To see this deeply rooted folk-thriller resonate so profoundly that it becomes India's official Oscar entry is an overwhelming honor. Now, bringing it to audiences across the country on November 13 in a pan-Indian release feels like bringing the story back full circle."
Set against the backdrop of rural Maharashtra, Gondhal dives into a dark, suspenseful web of obsession and betrayal. The narrative follows Suman, a young woman trapped in a suffocating and unhappy marriage. Seeking a way out, she exploits her lover Sarjerao's deep, fanatic obsession with the sacred traditional Gondhal ritual. As an overnight folk ritual unfolds under the cover of darkness, local power struggles, hidden motives, and secret betrayals collide, turning a sacred village night into a tense, dangerous game of crime and consequence before dawn.
"Cinema has no language barriers when the emotion is raw and honest, and I am filled with immense gratitude that viewers from every corner of India will get to experience this sacred, suspenseful journey on the big screen together," the filmmaker added.
Produced under Davakhar Films, Gondhal features Kishor Kadam, Ishitaa Deshmukh, Yogesh Sohoni, Nishad Bhoir, and Anuj Prabhu.