Actor Kirti Kulhari’s debut production, Kinaare, will premiere at the forthcoming Dharamshala International Film Festival (DIFF), set to run from October 29 to November 1 in Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh.
A story of family and fractured emotions, the film is written and directed by brothers Akbar and Azam Quadri. Kulhari essays the lead, Amina, in the film, alongside Rajeev Siddhartha, Alka Amin and Ravi Taneja.
Set in a village near Delhi, Kinaare follows Amina (Kulhari), a single woman who devotes her life to caring for her ageing parents and tending to her home. Her routine is disrupted when her cousin brother Azam visits after 15 years, reopening old wounds and bringing the family’s fractured past into focus. As they catch up on lost years, the reunion helps Amina find peace with the past and acceptance of the present.
Kulhari reflected on the journey of mounting her first feature as producer. “I have always wanted to tell stories which would make people pause and reflect, much needed in this fast-paced world that we are living in. To have something like Kinaare as my production debut was a conscious statement,” the actor told THR India.
She has backed the film under her banner, Kintsukuroi Films, along with Abhishek Koka and Maansi Guptey as co-producers.
“While the conversations in the industry revolve mainly around commercial success, I have always viewed cinema as a medium to tell unique stories and Kinaare is a reflection of that,” she said.
Rajeev Siddhartha, who plays Azam, said, “I feel Kinaare has such a universal theme that everybody who sees it will definitely be touched, be moved and be slightly changed from within after the experience.”
The film’s technical crew includes cinematographer Arjun Sundaram, composer Mohan Kannan, editor Bakul Matiyani and sound designer Sanjay Chaturvedi.
The 15th Dharamshala International Film Festival will run from October 29 to November 1, followed by an online programme from November 2 to 9. The festival takes place at Tibetan Children’s Village (TCV) in Upper Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh.
“I am thrilled that the world will discover Kinaare at DIFF! It’s an incredibly special film and I can’t wait for people to experience it,” Kulhari shared.