Director Theja Rio
‘I hoped the film would travel far beyond the land where it was born’Written and directed by Theja Rio, Angh builds on a body of work that has already earned Rio recognition on the international festival circuit through his short films. The feature marks his first full-length directorial venture.The film stars BAFTA Award-winning actor Douglas Henshall alongside an ensemble cast of Indigenous actors from Nagaland. It is produced by Nancy Nisa Beso and Theja Rio.Speaking about the selection, Theja Rio said, “It is a tremendous honour to have Angh selected for the prestigious Platform Competition at TIFF, one of the world’s most respected and beloved film festivals. Angh is a story about a people navigating the fragile passage from an ancestral past to an uncertain future. From the very beginning, I hoped the film would travel far beyond the land where it was born, inviting audiences not only into a story, but into the lives of a people, their memories, and their relationship with the world around them. Festivals like TIFF have the power to bring underrepresented cultures into the global conversation. For us, presenting Angh on this stage is about far more than the recognition of a debut feature. It is a moment of visibility for the people, culture, and storytelling traditions of Nagaland voices that deserve to be heard, seen, and celebrated by audiences across the world. Angh is shot on 16mm and performed almost entirely by non-actors from the region, in a tribal language spoken by fewer than one hundred thousand people. This approach was not a stylistic gesture but a necessity.”The screenplay is co-written by James Davis, with casting by Bendang Walling. Gaurav Dhingra, Jai Vir Rodgers and Bernardo Angeletti serve as executive producers.Produced by Winter Hymns Film and Undercover Squirrel, Angh marks the feature debut of Winter Hymns Film, a Nagaland-based production company known for its award-winning short films. The film brings together an international creative team while remaining rooted in the history, culture and traditions of Nagaland.
ANGH
‘This film is the result of an overwhelmingly strong desire to tell stories that are ours.’Polish cinematographer Adam Pietkiewicz has shot the film, while Margarida Caetano Dias serves as production designer, recreating 1960s Nagaland. Costume designer Manisha Garg worked to ensure period accuracy and cultural authenticity, while makeup designer Priya Lahon was responsible for the authentic depiction of traditional Naga tattoos.Producer Nancy Nisa Beso said, “This film is the result of an overwhelmingly strong desire to tell stories that are ours. What made this journey particularly special was bringing together an extraordinary mix of talent from around the world to tell a story that is deeply rooted in the land, history and culture of Nagaland. Angh is our attempt to honour our people, preserve the stories of our ancestors, and reclaim our narrative by taking it from the margins to the global stage. We hope audiences everywhere connect with its humanity while discovering a culture and history that have rarely been represented on screen.”
