Female director Tribeny Rai once took on hard labor in her native Sikkim, India, in order to prove that women are not weak. But she found that even those drastic efforts did not solve the problems of patriarchy and long-standing traditions that favor male decision-making, male children and even how women view their own roles in society.
Rai’s new film “The Shape of Momo” attempts to tackle the issue with a different, soft-power approach.The film tells the tale of a woman who resigns from her job and returns to her family that is apparently cursed by the death of several of its male members. But she finds the remaining women listless and unmotivated and makes it her task to become more independent and take more responsibility for themselves.
“The film explores themes of tradition, familial dynamics and the struggle against familial constraints. Will [lead character] Bishnu defy these expectations and carve out her path to independence. Or will she succumb to the overwhelming pressure to conform?” Rai asks.
“We are currently in the final stages of editing our film and are actively seeking post-production funding to complete the project,” she told Variety ahead of Film Bazaar, where “The Shape of Momo” appears in the Work-in-Progress Lab. “Through our participation, we aim to gain vital exposure to key industry professionals, including potential co-producers, international sales agents, distributors, and festival programmers, all of whom can help bring our film to a global audience.” It is currently structured as an India-Nepal co-production involving Dalley Khorsani Productions, Kathkala Films.
At an earlier stage the project was part of the 2022 edition of the Festival des 3 Continents’ Produire au Sud Film Lab (South Asia). But Film Bazaar represents its first time participating in a project market.
Rai has had a varied route to making this film. She studied at the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute in Kolkata, India, participated in the VGIK International Summer School in Russia and took part in the Producers Lab at the Rotterdam Film Festival. She also went to the Docskool Clinik in Kathmandu and completed the Talent Campus program of the Fajr International Film Festival in Iran.
The film’s co-writer and editor, Kislay Kislay, also co-wrote “Soni,” a film that premiered at the Venice Film Festival in 2018.
