Neeraj Ghaywan’s 'Homebound' wins Best Film Award at Indian Film Festival of Melbourne

“Homebound” won the best picture and best director award for Neeraj Ghaywan at the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM) 2025.

Ghaywan’s film, which first premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in the Un Certain Regard category, also closed IFFM on Sunday night.

The film, produced by Dharma Productions, stars Ishaan Khatter, Vishal Jethwa, and Janhvi Kapoor, is based on a New York Times article by Basharat Peer which describes a tragic friendship during the Covid-19 lockdown in India.

“To bring ‘Homebound’ to Melbourne, and to win these two awards is extremely special. To be in a room full of such diverse people feels truly incredible. One feels so special to see the Australian government and ministers doing so much for this festival, I have never seen such kind of support anywhere else in the world,” Ghaywan, who made his feature debut with the much-acclaimed “Masaan” in 2015, said in a statement.

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“We could not have imagined a more powerful and fitting way to close IFFM 2025 than with Neeraj Ghaywan’s ‘Homebound’. The film embodies everything we celebrate at this festival—fearless storytelling, stellar performances, and narratives that are both deeply personal and universally relatable,” festival director Mitu Bhowmik Lange said.

“Watching the audience rise to their feet in applause was a moment of pride not just for the team of Homebound, but for Indian cinema as a whole,” Bhowmick added.

Abhishek Bachchan was named Best Actor for his role in Shoojit Sircar’s “I Want to Talk”, Geeta Kailasam won the Best Actress Award for Tamil movie “Angammal”. The film also won Best Indie Film. Aamir Khan won Excellence in Cinema and served as the chief guest of the festival. Bengali film “Baksho Bondi”, which opened the festival, was recognised with Equality in Cinema award.

Aditi Rao Hydari was awarded with ‘Diversity in Cinema’, Aravind Swami with ‘Leadership in Cinema’ and comedian Vir Das with the ‘Disrupter’ award at IFFM. “Drifters” was named the best short film Australia, and “Kalar Pancils” best short film for India. Child actor Gugun Kipgen received a special mention for his acting in Manipuri film “Boong”.

In the OTT segment, Vikramaditya Motwane’s “Black Warrant” won the Best Series, Jaideep Ahlawat was named Best Actor for “Pataal Lok” season two and Nimisha Sajayan Best Actress for “Dabba Cartel”.