Who is Anuparna Roy, the filmmaker who made history by winning Orizzonti Award at the Venice Film Festival?

Filmmaker Anuparna Roy has scripted history by winning the Orizzonti Award for Best Director at the prestigious 82nd Venice Film Festival for her feature debut ‘Songs of Forgotten Trees’, which is presented by Anurag Kashyap.

‘  Songs of Forgotten Trees’—the only Indian film that got selected in the esteemed Orizzonti section this year— bowled over the audience and jury as it won the coveted title for Roy, who took to the stage, visibly emotional and teary eyed and dedicated the award to the country.

Who is Anuparna Roy?

The filmmaker who has made history was raised in Narayanpur, a village in the Purulia district of West Bengal. She earned an undergraduate degree in English literature from Burdwan University and later pursued studies in mass communications.

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Before beginning her career in the world of films, she worked in a call centre in Delhi and as an IT sales executive in Mumbai. Roy is also trained in acting. She completed acting training at Anupam Kher’s Actor Prepares Institute and participated in acting workshops.

About her movie

Starring Naaz Shaikh and Sumi Baghel, ‘ _Songs of Forgotten Trees_’ is produced by Bibhanshu Rai, Romil Modi and Ranjan Singh and follows the story of two women and how their lives get intertwined in Mumbai.

Reacting to the huge win, director Anuparna Roy shared from Venice, “This film is a tribute to every woman who’s ever been silenced, overlooked, or underestimated. May this win inspire more voices, more stories, and more power for women in cinema and beyond.”

Beaming with pride over the honour, Bibhanshu Rai said, “Making this film was never easy. We went through challenges, tough days, and moments of doubt. But we held on, because this story had to be told. I knew Anuparna would never give up. She has that fire and it kept all of us going.”

In an interview with Hindustan Times, the filmmaker was quoted saying, “It was definitely tough, but the kind of backing I received set an example for the world. Gender is literally secondary. My whole film was backed by men- Ranjan Singh sir, who said yes when I was just scripting.”

She added, “Bibhanshu Rai has always been there for me, stood like a pillar, Romil Modi sir was there when I just started, then Anurag Kashyap sir was a bonus. Ranjan sir helped me showcase the film to him, Naveen Shetty, the co producer. Vikas Kumar, Sharib Khan the co producers… for a film talking about friendship, outside the film too, the team members were friends and close. This is huge.”