Tillotama Shome's Baksho Bondi – Shadowbox To Open Indian Film Festival Of Melbourne 2025
After making waves at the Berlin Film Festival 2025, Baksho Bondi – Shadowbox is now set to open the 16th edition of the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM). The Bengali-language film, which had its world premiere in the prestigious Perspektive Deutsches Kino section at Berlinale, will mark its Australian premiere as the Opening Night film of IFFM 2025 on August 14.
Starring acclaimed actor Tillotama Shome and co-produced by Shome and Jim Sarbh, Baksho Bondi – Shadowbox is a deeply introspective narrative centered around Maya, a working-class woman living in a dusty Kolkata suburb. The film is co-directed by first-time filmmakers Tanushree Das and Saumyananda Sahi, who bring a subtle, humanistic lens to their storytelling.
Set against the quiet rhythms of Barrackpore, the film explores themes of love, resilience, and the quiet strength of women navigating their everyday lives. Shome's portrayal of Maya has been widely praised for its layered emotional depth and unspoken power.
'Baksho Bondi is incredibly close to my heart," says Shome. 'Playing Maya was a lesson in listening to silences, in discovering strength in small acts, and in understanding how quiet resilience shapes women's lives in a world that often overlooks them. After Berlin, bringing Maya's story to Melbourne feels special because of the incredible strength and spirit of inclusion that radiates from Mitu, the festival director of IFFM. This film is a love letter to working women, to dusty afternoons in Barrackpore, and to the courage that quietly persists even when no one is watching."
Mitu Bhowmick Lange, Director of IFFM, expressed her pride in featuring the film as the festival's opening event: 'We are honoured to open IFFM 2025 with Baksho Bondi – Shadowbox, a film that exemplifies the strength of Indian independent cinema while touching on themes that are deeply personal and globally relatable. Tillotama Shome's performance as Maya is nothing short of extraordinary, and Tanushree Das and Saumyananda Sahi have crafted a tender, honest, and visually stunning film that resonates with the spirit of resilience and hope. It is exactly the kind of cinema we are proud to showcase at IFFM."
Now in its 16th year, IFFM stands as the largest celebration of Indian cinema outside India. Supported by the Victorian Government, the festival will run from August 14 to 24, 2025, featuring a diverse lineup of films across languages and platforms. The IFFM Awards Night, set for August 15, will honour cinematic excellence across both film and OTT categories.
With Baksho Bondi – Shadowbox, IFFM 2025 reaffirms its commitment to championing voices rooted in lived experiences, spotlighting stories that are not only culturally rich but emotionally universal.
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