When Anuparna Roy accepted the Orizzonti Award for her debut film Songs of Forgotten Trees in Venice earlier this month, she'd forged a victory that's rare for most women of her background.
Trembling with joy and unable to hold back tears, Roy's visceral display of emotion on stage demonstrated how big the moment was - scripting history as the first Indian director to win in a category devoted to new voices in independent world cinema.
Roy's grassroots origins in a nondescript tribal village in West Bengal's Purulia district - thousands of miles from Venice's glamorous palazzos - makes her triumph even more meaningful.
Unlike previous Bengali filmmakers who found success in Kolkata's elite circles, Roy, 31, took a path more familiar to many small-town Indians: a college degree followed by a call-center job, which she initially saw as an escape route from societal pressures and a means to economic stability.
A chance meeting with film students in Delhi sparked her passion for cinema, leading her to save every penny to create her debut short Run to the River.
After moving to Mumbai, she boldly approached producer Ranjan Singh at a party with the question, Sir, would you like to produce a third-world film? This led to Singh supporting Songs of Forgotten Trees.
The film tells the story of two women, Thooya, an aspiring actress turned escort, and Swetha, a migrant working in a call center, exploring their intimate relationship amid marginalization in urban life. Praised for its raw portrayal of survival, the film aligns with Roy's commitment to authenticity over sugar-coated narratives.
On her big day at Venice, Roy wore a handloom saree combining her cultural roots with political statements, expressing support for the children of Gaza. She firmly stated, I can't make sugar-coated cinema. I have to make films that represent the world we live in, even if they upset people. This defiance is set to continue, as Roy is already planning sequels to her groundbreaking work.
