In this special Industry Spotlight, a WAVES Film Bazaar 2025 feature, critically acclaimed filmmakers Hyash Tanmoy and Paromita Dhar spoke with Lohita Sujith, Sr. Director, Copyright & Digital Economy, Motion Picture Association about their journey in cinema and the evolving landscape of South Asian storytelling. Paromita shared that her early theatre experiences shaped her approach to storytelling, fostering imagination and patience, which she later applied to her documentary work on Behind the Tin Sheets. She emphasized that the film was more than cinema—it was a reflection on the transformation of Bangalore, turning the city’s rapid construction boom into a meditation on community and change. The project taught the value of sustained research, deep engagement with communities, and integrating real-life experiences into fiction, exemplified in her upcoming film Last Time on Earth, which Hash is producing with French co-production support.
Hash discussed his attraction to hybrid and experimental cinema, explaining that his curatorial and international experience allowed him to experiment with multiple forms and disciplines. Both filmmakers highlighted how working abroad exposed them to structural approaches, collaborative practices, and audience-centered strategies, which informed their representation of South Asian stories while maintaining authenticity.
When discussing Waves Film Bazaar, they emphasized its importance as a global meeting point for independent filmmakers. The Bazaar provides a space to find peers, exchange knowledge, and access co-production opportunities, critical for films like Ulta, which already has French and Canadian co-producers. Paromita stressed that participation clarifies a project’s vision, offers constructive feedback, and equips filmmakers to navigate competitive selection processes with transparency and resilience.
Finally, the duo reflected on international festival exposure, including TIFF and Berlinale Talents, which foster networks, inspire collaboration, and encourage cross-cultural storytelling. Waves Film Bazaar, they concluded, is not just a marketplace but a vital ecosystem for nurturing talent, building connections, and supporting independent voices in the global film industry.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Hyash Tanmoy
Hyash Tanmoy a producer and moving image practitioner whose transdisciplinary work explores speculative resilience, political reimagination, and socio-cultural inquiry. Rooted in South Asia, they produce hybrid works spanning fiction, creative documentary, post-cinematic narratives, and simulation-based environments that blur boundaries between form and meaning. Their projects range from short experimental essays to long-term research installations and feature films. Hyash builds future-facing cinema ecosystems in politically marginalised and ecologically fragile regions where storytelling must navigate crisis and resistance. Recognised by Berlinale Talents, Locarno Industry Academy, Kyoto Filmmakers Lab, Ars Electronica, and Climate Story Lab–South Asia, they are developing a post-network archive infrastructure.
Paromita Dhar
Graduated with a degree in film and video from the University of Technology, Sydney and also has a Master's Diploma in Film from Sydney Film School. She is the cinematographer of the award-winning documentary Project about construction workers in Bangalore Behind the Tin Sheets, Currently, she has shot Birha, which premiered in the Busan International Film Festival and IDFA in 2018. She also shot the film That Cloud Never Left, which premiered at the Rotterdam International Film Festival 2019. While living in Madrid for three years, she directed her film In between about Bangladeshi immigrants in Madrid. Which has also been screened internationally. She has also been part of Berlinale Talents 2021. Paromita is currently shooting three documentary projects as a cinematographer, which are under various stages of production. She is also an instructor at Queer Frames Lab 2024-2025. She is currently working on her first feature-length fiction film, ULTA.
