Pa. Ranjith-Backed ‘Mayilaa’ To Premiere At International Film Festival Of Rotterdam 2026

Mayilaa, written and directed by first-time feature filmmaker Semmalar Annam, will have its world premiere at the 55th International Film Festival Of Rotterdam (IFFR), early next year. It will screen in the Bright Future section of the prestigious festival. The Tamil film is being presented by director Pa. Ranjith. It's being produced by Newton Cinema, the same production house behind Paradise (starring Roshan Mathew and Darshana Rajendran) and Don Palathara’s Family.

The film's synopsis reads, “Set in a small village in Tamil Nadu, Mayilaa tells the story of Poongodi, a woman whose struggle for independence and self-respect becomes a journey of quiet rebellion. Through the eyes of her daughter Sudar, the film reflects the unspoken resilience of women and children who carry both tenderness and trauma in their everyday lives. "

Speaking about the film, Pa Ranjith says, “Mayilaa beautifully captures the complex realities and inner world of working women from marginalized backgrounds. With honest cinematic language, Semmalar Annam portrays a woman's world with striking naturalness and nuance. Actors Melodi and Shudar are remarkable in their performances Mayilaa moved me deeply, like a poem.”

Melodi Dorcas plays the titular Mayilaa in the film. The cast also includes V. Shudar Kodi, Geetha Kailasam, Sathya Maruthani, Auto Chandran, RJ Priyanka, and Janaki Suresh. The creative team includes Vinoth Janakiraman handling cinematography, A. Sreekar Prasad as the editor, Meenakshi Ilayaraja handling both background score and vocals.

At a recent event for Mari Selvaraj’s Bison, starring Dhruv Vikram, director Pa. Ranjith spoke about his experience working with Vikram on Thangalaan. Ranjith praised Vikram’s performance, stating it did not receive the recognition it deserved.

He said, “As a director, I may have made mistakes with Thangalaan. I may also have gone wrong in communicating what I intended to with my audience.” He added, “There was no flaw in Vikram’s performance. He acted brilliantly, and one cannot fault anything in the way he performed.” Despite critical acclaim, the film, which released last August, underperformed at the box office.