In this special Industry Spotlight, a WAVES Film Bazaar 2025 feature, filmmaker Sanju Surendran joined Lohita Sujith, Sr. Director, Copyright & Digital Economy, Motion Picture Association, to discuss his journey and work. An FTII Pune graduate, Sanju reflected on how the institute allowed him to explore his own filmmaking idiom and discover his swabhav, a unique creative voice, particularly through a month-long masterclass with Manikaul.

He discussed his debut, Aedan: Garden of Desire (2017), which won second-best film at the Kerala State Film Awards. The film, based on three of Harish’s short stories, combined magical realism with observational storytelling, and Sanju credited its success to collaboration with friends and peers.

Sanju then spoke about Khidki Gaav, inspired by Calvino’s If on a Winter’s Night a Traveler, which won the Hylife Vision Award at the Busan International Film Festival 2025. Despite production challenges, he and his team, including actors Roshan and Bhanu, completed the film, with post-production in Seoul helping capture Delhi’s winter and the film’s emotional tone.

Reflecting on his work, Sanju emphasized the importance of being rooted in culture while crafting stories with universal resonance. He highlighted Film Bazaar’s support for regional and documentary cinema and offered advice to emerging filmmakers: focus, prepare, and practice daily, whether writing, shooting, or experimenting with visuals, echoing the dedication of cinematographer Santosh Sivan.

Sanju also spoke about how last year, his film The Fishers of Men, Kothiyan was in the co-production market. The film won the second best pitch and introduced Sanju to new people, producers or investors. He also received interest from several international producers for the film alongside invaluable advice on how to develop a story and build a film.