New Delhi [India], March 4 (ANI): Bollywood stars and rumoured couple Richa Chadha and Ali Fazal are collaborating as producers for their first production venture titled ‘Girl Will Be Girls’.
The upcoming project is a part of their newly-launched production company Pushing Buttons Studios. Indian film critic and trade analyst Taran Adarsh shared the news on his Instagram handle.
He wrote, “RICHA CHADHA – ALI FAZAL TURN PRODUCERS… #RichaChadha and #AliFazal turn producers, announce their production company: Pushing Buttons Studios… The first script to be green-lit under their banner is titled #GirlsWillBeGirls and will be directed by Shuchi Talati.”
Taran added, “GirlsWillBeGirls is the only #Indian script invited to the prestigious Berlinale Script Station 2021… A lab that selects only 10 projects from around the world each year.”
As per Variety, the film is being written and directed by Shuchi Talati. The movie is set in an elite boarding school in a small Himalayan hill town in northern India and follows the story of a 16-year-old girl, whose rebellious coming-of-age is hijacked by her mother who never got to come-of-age.
The production company, set up with a view to narrate stories rooted in the Indian ethos for a global audience, will kick off with ‘Girls Will Be Girls’, the only Indian selection of the 10 projects chosen for the Berlinale Talents Script Station program this year.
The script has also been selected for the Jerusalem Sam Spiegel Film Lab, and it won a New York State Council of the Arts Grant for development.
Talati has previously helmed several shorts including ‘A Period Piece’, which was an SXSW selection in 2020.
“I like my work to challenge dominant narratives around gender, sexuality, and the Indian identity,” said Talati.
Talati and Chadha had first presented the project at the 2018 Film Bazaar in Goa, organised by India’s National Film Development Corporation. Indian company Crawling Angel Films and France’s Dolce Vita Films boarded the project there.
Speaking about the project, Chadha said, “The world that Shuchi has created is relatable, often cruel but never hopeless or nihilistic. Its honest awkwardness will make you chuckle, not weep.”
“This is the first time that Richa and I are collaborating on a film as producers and the experience so far has been very rewarding,” said Fazal.
Fazal added, “This film being our first is close to our hearts. I am also excited that our studio will enter the market with such a progressive, female-led story. We hope to be able to tell thought-provoking and universal stories with humour and love.”
Crawling Angel’s Sanjay Gulati and Pooja Chauhan and Dolce Vita’s Claire Chassagne will produce alongside Chadha and Fazal. (ANI)