Film archive, 2026

Birds in the Dark

Hanere de Panchi

Director Shashank WALIA

1Festival entries

★Avg. rating

A police informant Jagtar takes Amir, a Muslim man from Kashmir, into custody. As they travel through the jungle and the mountains towards the bustling city, Jagtar eventually sets Amir free and returns to the hometown he once fled. There, as agricultural workers begin to organize a struggle, Jagtar reunites with Raman, a landowner and his former lover. Meanwhile, Amir comes to the town looking for Jagtar and meets Dilraj, the leader of the workers’ organization, and begins to feel a sense of solidarity. Shashank Walia who began his career as a cinematographer, takes on both directing and cinematography for this film, portraying weighty social issues including sexuality, patriarchy, famers’ resistance, and the caste hierarchy, on the black-and-white screen with images that are poignantly beautiful at times, intense and dynamic at others. This is a compelling debut film, at once poetic and meditative, yet charged with a passionate spirit of liberation.

Stills5

Birds in the Dark 1 — © Two Black Squares Media

Birds in the Dark 2 — © Two Black Squares Media

Birds in the Dark 3 — © Two Black Squares Media

Birds in the Dark 4 — © Two Black Squares Media

Birds in the Dark 5 — © Two Black Squares Media

Film details

Director: Shashank WALIA
Country/Region: India
Year: 2026
Length: 141min
Elsewhere: Letterboxd IMDb Wikidata TMDB Douban

Director

Shashank WALIA

Shashank Walia studied cinematography at the Film and Television Institute of India and mass communication at Jamia Millia Islamia. His directorial debut short, In the Month of Love (2019), screened at the International Film Festival Rotterdam and other film festivals. He has since directed short documentaries while working as a cinematographer on produtions for NHK, Netflix, and others. Birds in the Dark is his feature directorial debut.

From Busan International Film Festival 2026, No. 31

Credits

Director: Shashank WALIA
Producer: Reema KAUR, Hansal MEHTA, Sahil SAIGAL
Cast: Mauli SINGH, Sapna DAS, Harwinder AUJLA, Shahnawaz BHAT, Navdeep BAJWA
Screenplay: Shashank WALIA
Cinematography: Shashank WALIA
Production design: Yash MODAK
Editing: Reema KAUR
Sound: Shashank KOTHARI
Production company: Two Black Squares Media, True Story Films

Festival appearances1

Choose a festival entry to see its screenings, articles and audience reviews.

Birds in the DarkBusan International Film Festival 2026, No. 31Vision: Asia

Festival history1

釜山国际电影节, 2026Vision: Asia, Official selectionNew Currents AwardSongwon Vision Audience Award - Asia

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