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An all-women crew short film, Chunni, produced by Winlight Studios, has been officially selected at the prestigious New York Indian Film Festival, marking its World Premiere on May 30. Widely regarded as North America’s oldest and most prestigious festival for Independent Indian cinema, NYIFF is known for its highly-competitive and acclaimed lineup celebrating powerful South Asian storytelling.
Directed by Kaashvi Agarwal and produced by Jiya Bhardwaj, the duo have also written the film. The 15-minute plus short film features Preeti Panigrahi, Kartik Phogat, Neha Khosla and Karan Chibber with cinematography by Monica Tiwari.
Set in contemporary Delhi, Chunni is a poignant coming-of-age drama that explores how a young woman’s sense of self collides with the expectations imposed upon her by society. Through one transformative night, Avni (played by Preeti Panigrahi) confronts the quiet weight of conformity, the contradictions of freedom and the unspoken fear that shapes how women learn to defend, live and exist from a very young age.
Panigrahi reflected on the unique experience of working on the film, saying, “It is almost therapeutic to work as a woman on an all-woman set. For me the core memory of working on this film was eating aloo puri and chai in the morning after we had just wrapped shooting for three nights. Such a simple thing, yet it gave me so much joy because I had a bunch of genuine and likeminded women sharing it with me. I made so many girlfriends on this shoot and some of these relationships are for keeps, for sure.”
Bhardwaj shared, “We’ve been very thoughtful about our festival journey, carefully selecting spaces where Chunni can be embraced with the sensitivity and depth it deserves. But beyond the global stage, it is equally important for us to bring the film home at Indian Film Festivals across India, where its realities are lived every day. At its heart, Chunni is both a love letter and a protest. It is a story that confronts the urgent conversation around women’s safety and the silence surrounding it. We believe cinema has the power not only to move people, but to provoke thought and inspire change. After our festival run, we hope to find a digital home that shares this belief and can carry Chunni to audiences far and wide.”
Speaking about the film, Bhardwaj, who started her career as an assistant director with YRF on their grand slate of films added, “When I read the first draft, I thought of how important this story was, and even more, how important it was to be told by women. It’s time we tell our own stories; it’s time we create safe spaces for women to work without prejudice; it’s time we let them express themselves through their art without question. The power we felt, when the fifteen of us were out on Delhi roads at 3 am for our tech recce…something we would have never dared to do if we were by ourselves. The genesis of the making of this film translates on screen so beautifully.”
Director Kaashvi Agarwal described Chunni as deeply personal, saying, “Chunni will always be my most special film. It began with a simple conversation with my mom and after losing her, finishing it felt like something I owed to her and to myself. Making this with an all-women team healed me in ways I didn’t expect. Even my Daadi, at 79, became part of our team as we shot this in my house. This film carries all of them in it.”
The title Chunni serves as a powerful metaphor that anchors the narrative. The film questions whether women should continue confining themselves within societal expectations in the name of safety, or instead embrace comfort in their own skin and expect dignity and respect from the world around them.
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