Indian films screen at Busan 2026 as Rima Das' Not a Hero gets its Asian premiere
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Indian titles including Rima Das' Not a Hero and Vishwendra Singh's Khoriya screened at the 31st Busan film festival this week; Das also sits on a jury.
What Happened
Indian cinema has a strong presence at the 31st Busan International Film Festival in South Korea, which runs from October 6 to 15, 2026. Assamese filmmaker Rima Das' Not a Hero had its Asian premiere on Thursday, October 8, in the festival's A Window on Asian Cinema section, and Vishwendra Singh's debut feature Khoriya has also premiered at the festival. Das is serving on the jury for the New Currents Award and filmmaker Anuparna Roy's Lovers in the Blue Night, a prize-winner at Venice this year, is also in the line-up.
Key Facts
- Festival dates: October 6 to 15, 2026, in Busan, South Korea; this is the 31st edition.
- Not a Hero, a 97-minute coming-of-age drama about an 11-year-old boy who moves from the city to his family's village in Assam, had its Asian premiere on October 8. It first premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival in February 2026.
- Rima Das is a juror for the New Currents Award.
- Anuparna Roy's Lovers in the Blue Night, a Hindi-language India-US production about four migrants in Mumbai's nightlife, comes to Busan after winning the NETPAC Award for Best Asian Film at Venice.
- Khoriya, about two Nepali half-brothers whose poultry farm is threatened by a bird flu outbreak, premiered at Busan. It had earlier won a post-production grant at the NFDC's Film Bazaar work-in-progress lab in 2025.
- Reports count either six or nine Indian films across sections, depending on whether shorts and other strands are included.
Why It Matters
Busan is one of Asia's largest film festivals and an important meeting point for buyers, sales agents and programmers who decide which films travel to other festivals and streaming platforms. For independent Indian films, which often struggle to get theatrical releases at home, a Busan slot can open doors to international distribution and co-production money.
The Indian line-up this year leans heavily on regional languages and stories from outside the big cities. Not a Hero is set in rural Assam. Other reported titles include The Soul Whisperer, a Malayalam drama by Leo Thaddeus; Selvi, a Tamil film starring and produced by Anjali Patil; a Punjabi film by Shashank Walia set during the farmers' protests; and Salt Electric, a short Konkani film by Paromita Dhar set in rural Goa. This mix shows how much of India's festival cinema now comes from languages and regions that mainstream Hindi cinema rarely covers.
Das' jury role matters too. An Indian filmmaker judging new Asian talent at a major festival reflects the standing that independent Indian directors have built, and Anuparna Roy's Venice award this year added to that recognition.
| | Film | Director | Language or setting | Busan status | |
|---|---|---|---|
| | Not a Hero | Rima Das | Assam village | Asian premiere, Oct 8 | |
| | Lovers in the Blue Night | Anuparna Roy | Hindi, Mumbai | After Venice NETPAC award | |
| | Khoriya | Vishwendra Singh | Nepali brothers, poultry farm | Premiered at Busan | |
| | The Soul Whisperer | Leo Thaddeus | Malayalam | A Window on Asian Cinema | |
Impact
Short-term: Screenings and meetings at the festival can lead to sales deals, invitations to other festivals and streaming interest for these films over the coming weeks.
Long-term: A steady presence at major Asian festivals strengthens the case for co-productions between India and other Asian countries, and gives regional-language filmmakers a route to audiences beyond India.
Who is affected: Independent Indian filmmakers and producers, regional-language film industries, festival audiences, distributors and streaming platforms looking for Asian content.
Key Takeaway
India's independent and regional-language cinema is well represented at Busan 2026, with premieres for Not a Hero and Khoriya and Rima Das on the New Currents jury.
Questions and Answers
When is the Busan International Film Festival 2026?
The 31st edition runs from October 6 to 15, 2026, in Busan, South Korea.
Which Indian films are showing at Busan this year?
Titles reported include Rima Das' Not a Hero, Anuparna Roy's Lovers in the Blue Night, Vishwendra Singh's Khoriya and Leo Thaddeus' The Soul Whisperer, among others. Reports put the total at six or nine, depending on which sections are counted.
Is Not a Hero a new film?
It premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival in February 2026. Its screening at Busan on October 8 was its Asian premiere.
What role is Rima Das playing at Busan besides showing her film?
She is a member of the jury for the New Currents Award, one of the festival's competition prizes for Asian filmmakers.
Sourced and fact-checked by the Peepals Global Editorial Team
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Reported, fact-checked and published by the Peepals Global Editorial Team.
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