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Welcome to my world! This space will always remain a work in progress. It has many threads to pick from so hope you stumble upon something you like.
Welcome to my world! This space will always remain a work in progress. It has many threads to pick from so hope you stumble upon something you like.
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Featured film
Zwigato
Featured film
Zwigato
The film is set in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. It explores the life of Manas, an ex-factory floor manager and his family. After losing his job, Manas is forced to work as a food delivery rider, grappling with the app on his phone and the world of ratings and incentives.
Director
I didn't choose to be a director. It's the stories that compel me to become one. They emerge from all that I see, experience, think about… everything that I am impacted by. Making films is consuming and challenging but also immensely satisfying and exciting as it brings together my creative impulses and social concerns. It has pushed my boundaries like nothing else has. Maybe only second to being a mother!
Direction
I didn't choose to be a director. It's the stories that compel me to become one. They emerge from all that I see, experience, think about… everything that I am impacted by. Making films is consuming and challenging but also immensely satisfying and exciting as it brings together my creative impulses and social concerns. It has pushed my boundaries like nothing else has. Maybe only second to being a mother!
2008
Firaaq
Firaaq traces the emotional journeys of ‘ordinary’ people in the aftermath of a carnage. Some are victims, some perpetrators and some who choose to watch silently.
more...
2018
Manto
Manto is based on the four most tumultuous years in the life of Saadat Hasan Manto, the Urdu writer of the 1940’s.
more...
2023
Zwigato
Zwigato is about a food delivery rider and his family and how they grapple with the relentlessness of life. But not without their shared moments of joy.
Producer
Nandita Das Initiatives was set up as a creative platform in 2016. It aims to produce cinema with a conscience and also provide a space for other artistic expressions. The first NDI project was Manto, released in 2018 and the last one was Zwigato, released in 2023. The titles of the films rhyme, but that was not intentional!
My next film is about relationships – marriage, separation and motherhood. It is my most personal film yet.
Actor
Acting was neither a dream, nor an ambition. I remain a hesitant actor even after doing more than 40 feature films in 10 different languages.
Every character I have played and every story I have been part of has been an experience that has enriched my life. These films have taken me to different parts of the country for the shoot and to different parts of the world for the screenings at various film festivals. It has been an incredible journey! And hopefully will continue along with my other interests.
Acting
Acting was neither a dream, nor an ambition. I remain a hesitant actor even after doing more than 40 feature films in 10 different languages.
Every character I have played and every story I have been part of has been an experience that has enriched my life. These films have taken me to different parts of the country for the shoot and to different parts of the world for the screenings at various film festivals. It has been an incredible journey! And hopefully will continue along with my other interests.
Social Advocacy
Before I knew words like feminism and secularism, it was part of my upbringing that was innately liberal and inclusive. Just as I entered college, I joined the group, Jan Natya Manch which was led by the amazing theatre activist, Safdar Hashmi. We performed plays on various social issues on the streets of Delhi. At 18, the idealist in me thought I was changing the world! I did my Master’s degree in Social Work and thereafter, got involved with civil society organizations and social movements. I worked for 5 years in NGOs before I stumbled upon acting which gave me an opportunity to engage and talk about social issues in various public forums. Slowly my social work turned into social advocacy.
Social Advocate
Before I knew words like feminism and secularism, it was part of my upbringing that was innately liberal and inclusive. Just as I entered college, I joined the group, Jan Natya Manch which was led by the amazing theatre activist, Safdar Hashmi. We performed plays on various social issues on the streets of Delhi. At 18, the idealist in me thought I was changing the world! I did my Master’s degree in Social Work and thereafter, got involved with civil society organizations and social movements. I worked for 5 years in NGOs before I stumbled upon acting which gave me an opportunity to engage and talk about social issues in various public forums. Slowly my social work turned into social advocacy.
Nandita Das is an actor, filmmaker and social advocate. Over the last three decades, she has acted in more than 40 feature films across 10 languages, working with eminent directors such as Mrinal Sen, Shyam Benegal, Deepa Mehta, Adoor Gopalakrishnan, Rituparno Ghosh and Mani Ratnam. She made her directorial debut in 2008 with Firaaq, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and won wide critical acclaim. Her second film, Manto (2018), based on the life of writer Saadat Hasan Manto, premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, where she has also twice served as jury. Her book, Manto & I, chronicles the six-year journey of making the film. In 2016, she founded Nandita Das Initiatives, a creative platform that co-produced Manto and her third film, Zwigato (2023), which follows a food delivery rider and his family and premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. She was conferred the Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French Government, and holds a Master's degree in Social Work. She continues to advocate for human rights and social justice, and is currently developing her fourth feature film, exploring the dynamics of marriage in contemporary society.
Nandita Das has acted in 40 films in 10 languages. She has directed 3 well-acclaimed films, Firaaq (2008), Manto (2018) and Zwigato (2023). She has served twice as a jury member at the Cannes Film Festival among others. She is a strong advocate for issues of social justice. In 2016, she founded ‘Nandita Das Initiatives', a creative platform which also produced her feature films Manto and Zwigato.
