Austin’s Indie Meme Film Festival Announces Films for 11th Edition of South Asian cinema-focused fest
The 11th Annual Indie Meme Film Festival announced its film lineup and events for the acclaimed Austin-based film festival celebrating bold and innovative South Asian cinema from around the world. Gala selections begin with a Kick-Off screening of Jitank Singh Gurjar’s Vimukt (In Search of the Sky).
Opening Night presentation will feature Tribeny Rai’s Shape of Momo, with screenwriter Kislay in attendance. The Centerpiece screening of Ali Asgari’s Divine Comedy, will feature an appearance by screenwriter Alireza Khatami. Concluding the festivities, the Closing Night presentation will showcase the documentary Give It a Shot, with director Vaishali Sinha joining the audience to discuss the film’s impact.
This year’s edition will feature a diverse slate of narrative features, documentaries, and short films highlighting voices from South Asian, and Iran. Themes explored through the highly curated selections include explorations of identity, migration, family, politics, and social change. This year’s lineup includes 27 films, (6 narrative features, 4 documentaries, and 17 short films), representing 14 countries, with all screenings taking place at AFS Cinema (6259 Middle Fiskville Road).
Ananyaa Ravi, Indie Meme Board President, said, “As we begin our second decade, we can see the fruits of the meaningful connections this film festival has fostered between our filmmakers and audiences. Our desire to showcase South Asian storytelling has grown into a year-long effort including screenings and events that have drawn attention to what we are doing in Austin from filmmakers and film lovers all over the world.”
Animon Jose, Indie Meme Programming Chair, added, “This year’s ambitious lineup highlights the fearless voices of the South Asian diaspora, pushing the boundaries of storytelling while exploring universal themes of identity, resilience & human spirit, and social change.”
Indie Meme will kick off the festivals’ screenings and events on Wednesday, April 22, with a member mixer at Vivo at The Linc followed by a screening of Jitank Singh Gurjar’s Vimukt (In Search of the Sky). The film is an exploration of the attitudes and challenges that face people with disabilities in rural India. Starring Raghvendra Bhadoriya and Meghna Agarwal as Jasrath and Vidya, as a couple struggling with the financial and social challenges of caring for their developmentally disabled son Naran (Nikhil Yadav), they undertake a religious pilgrimage to the Maha Kumba in hopes of finding a solution. The film won two NETPAC Awards at the Toronto FF.
Thursday April 23 will feature Indie Meme’s Texas Showcase, highlighting the work of locally-based South Asian filmmakers. Highlights will include Rachel Immaraj’s documentary An Unquiet Mind, which explores the lesser‑known realities of obsessive‑compulsive disorder and the experiences of people living with severe OCD. Santosh Dahal’s New Moon Rain about a devoted father’s life disrupted when traditional discipline methods cause him to face harsh accusations and community judgment. Aliza Khan’s Texas Jaanu will make its International Premiere with its debut. In the film, a newlywed cinephile from India befriends a ragtag trio of experimental filmmakers in Austin, complicating her relationship with her white-collar husband.
Friday, April 24 will mark Indie Meme’s official Opening Night celebration, beginning with a Filmmaker Brunch, followed by red carpet entrances and a screening at AFS Cinema, and then concluding with an afterparty at the KMFA Studios’ Event Space (41 Navasota Street). Tribeny Rai’s festival favorite Shape of Momo. Rai’s directorial debut, and loosely based on her life, it follows Bishnu, a woman who returns to her hometown in a Himalayan village after quitting her job only to face mounting family pressures and societal expectations. She quickly discovers she must choose between conforming to tradition or claiming her independence. Kislay, who wrote the screenplay for Shape of Momo, will attend and participate in a post-screening Q&A.
Saturday, April 25 will feature the Centerpiece presentation of Ali Asgari’s sharp-witted satire Divine Comedy. The critically-acclaimed film follows a 40-year-old filmmaker who’s spent his entire career making films in Turkish-Azeri, none of which have ever been screened in Iran. His latest work, once again denied permission to screen, inspires him to take on an underground mission to showcase his film to an Iranian audience, dodging government censors, and an absurd bureaucracy along the way. Allreza Khatami, who wrote the screenplay for Divine Comedy, will attend and participate in a post-screening Q&A.
Sunday, April 26 will wrap up Indie Meme with a Closing Night Gala screening of Vaishali Sinha’s documentary Give It a Shot, followed by a celebratory afterparty at the Lonestar Court Hotel (10901 Domain Drive). The film looks at the development of a new male contraceptive that could revolutionize family planning and transform women’s lives worldwide. The effort to successfully launch a reversible male contraceptive would mark the first breakthrough of its kind since the modern condom was invented 200 years ago. Vaishali Sinha will attend the film festival and participate in a post-screening Q&A.
Additional highlights among the narrative features include Ishan Shukla’s animated sci-fi feature Schirkoa: In Lies We Trust. The film is set in a society where citizens wear paper bags over their heads to erase social differences. Sivaranjini J’s Victoria explores religious and cultural tensions through the story of a small‑town beautician who runs away with her boyfriend against her family’s wishes. Annapurna Sriram’s offbeat Fucktoys focuses on a sex worker determined to break a strange curse through a chaotic quest across a surreal world of eccentric characters.
The festival’s documentary slate highlights stories of perseverance, science, and human connection. Orlando von Einsidel’s The Cycle of Love, recounts the remarkable true story of Delhi street artist PK Mahanandia, who bicycled more than 6,000 miles from India to Sweden in 1977 to reunite with the woman he loved. Arjun Talwar’s Letters From Wolf Street offers a portrait of a single street in Warsaw seen through the lens of an Indian immigrant filmmaker seeking connection and understanding.
Indie Meme Film Festival’s shorts programs once again spotlight emerging voices and inventive storytelling. Highlights among the narrative shorts include Sayani Gupta’s Aasmani, which follows the efforts of a grandmother Smita and her precocious 10-year-old granddaughter to save an “old” classic car. Sayani Gupta will be on hand to participate in a post-screening Q&A. Sheryar Ali’s A Door To My Memory, is a dystopian story about a man struggling to preserve memories in a world where they must be stored on external drives; Adnan Al Rajeev’s Ali, follows a teenager in a coastal town where women are forbidden to sing; and Apurva Bardapurkar’s Blessings (Maaybaapache Aashiriwaad), a darkly comedic tale of parents determined to protect their son’s secret.
Other standout shorts include Mallika Juneja’s Little Fishies, which follows a young girl navigating grief during her father’s funeral rituals; Shubham Negi’s Hills Don’t Dance Alone, set in a Himalayan school where a dance performance sparks unexpected cultural conflict; Making its US Premiere, Mukti Krishan’s Waagh (The Leopard), a haunting story set in Mumbai where a mysterious animal death triggers paranoia and fear in a young boy’s world; and Rishi Chandna’s Kanippu (The Prediction) will make its North American Premiere. The film examines the fragile relationship between climate knowledge and lived experience through the perspectives of a grieving boatman and a meteorologist confronting the unpredictability of nature. Also making its North American Premiere is Amol Jalandhar Jadhav’s Deva Aaj Pan Vhay. The film follows the journey of Deva, a playful and inquisitive young boy who braves rough terrain and harsh weather each day to reach school, where he not only learns from books but from life itself.
For festival passes, tickets, and the full schedule, please visit: https://www.indiememe.org/
The 2026 Indie Meme Film Festival official selections:
GALA SELECTIONS
KICK OFF PRESENTATION
Vimukt (In Search of the Sky)
Director: Jitank Singh Gurjar
Country: India, Running Time: 90 min
When A 26-year-old mentally unstable son of a poverty-stricken elderly couple begins to feel like a burden and the reason for constant mockery in a village they have lived their entire life. The couple decides to travel to the Maha Kumbh, once in a 144-year pilgrimage, largest human gathering on the planet. Will this journey bring them the healing they hoped for? Or will their lives be changed forever?
OPENING NIGHT GALA PRESENTATION
Shape of Momo
Director: Tribeny Rai
Country: India, Running Time: 114 min
Bishnu returns to her Himalayan village after quitting her job, only to face mounting family pressures and societal expectations. As tensions rise with her pregnant sister’s arrival and a budding relationship with a “suitable” boy from her community, Bishnu must choose between conforming to tradition or claiming her independence.
SATURDAY CENTERPIECE PRESENTATION
Divine Comedy
Director: Ali Asgari
Countries: Iran/Italy/Germany/France/Turkey, Running Time: 98 min
Bahram is a 40-year-old filmmaker who’s spent his entire career making films in Turkish-Azeri, none of which have ever been screened in Iran. His latest work, once again denied permission by the Ministry of culture, pushes him to the edge of defiance. With his sharp-tongued, Vespa-riding producer Sadaf by his side, he embarks on an underground mission to showcase his film to an Iranian audience, dodging government censors, absurd bureaucracy, and his own self- doubts.
CLOSING NIGHT PRESENTATION
Give It A Shot
Director: Vaishali Sinha
Countries: Canada/India/United States, Running Time: 89 mins
A funny, moving, and ultimately urgent character-driven documentary, Give It A Shot follows a global quest to launch the first reversible male contraceptive since the modern condom was invented 200 years ago. From the indomitable 83-year-old Dr. Sujoy Guha in India to a dedicated team of developers in the U.S., director Vaishali Sinha provides an intimate window into a high-stakes scientific and social experiment. The film explores why this innovation has been so long in coming and how it could profoundly reframe gender equity and men’s responsibility in family planning.
ADDITIONAL NARRATIVE FEATURES
Fucktoys
Director: Annapurna Sriram
Country: USA, Running Time: 106 min
There’s a curse on Trashtown, and the only way for spunky naïve sex worker AP to stop losing her teeth and lift her curse is to slaughter a baby lamb for a thousand dollars. With the help of her dependable moped, her friend Danni, a just-out-of-prison sapphic spirit, and larger-than-life clients with cash, she can raise the money to be free!
Schirkoa: In Lies We Trust
Director: Ishan Shukla
Countries: India/France/Germany, Running Time: 103 min
In a sophisticated near perfect society ‘Schirkoa’, citizens live with paper bags on heads to dissolve differences. Tensions rise when the whispers of a mythical land without the bags start to float and a fresh council member sparks an accidental revolution.
Victoria
Director: Sivaranjini J
Country: India, Running Time: 84 min
Victoria, a small-town beautician, defies her Catholic family by fleeing with her Hindu boyfriend. Her life grows more complex when she receives a rooster meant for religious purposes from a neighbor.
DOCUMENTARY FEATURES
An Unquiet Mind
Director: Rachel Immaraj
Country: USA, Running Time 76 min
An Unquiet Mind is a documentary that sheds light on a darker side of OCD that many sufferers are too afraid to speak about. Through this film, we aim to build a movement of greater support towards those living with OCD.
The Cycle of Love
Director: Orlando von Einsidel
Country: UK, Running Time: 98 min
The Cycle of Love details the incredible 1977 journey of PK Mahanandia, a Delhi street artist who cycled 6,000 miles to Sweden to reunite with his love, Lotta von Schedvin.
Letters From Wolf Street
Director: Arjun Talwar
Country: Running Time: 97 min
A central Warsaw street becomes a kaleidoscope of Polish society. Behind the camera is an Indian migrant who is seeking to overcome the distance between himself and a country full of contradictions and anxieties.
SHORT FILMS
NARRATIVE SHORTS
A Door To My Memory
Director: Sheryar Ali
Country: Pakistan, Running Time: 15 min
In a dystopian world where memories are stored on external drives, a 65-year-old man tries desperately to hold on to memories he no longer has space for.
Aasmani
Director: Sayani Gupta
Country: India, Running Time: 34 min
To save her aging vintage car from being replaced by a modern alternative, spunky grandmother Smita and her precocious 10-year-old granddaughter launch a desperate, high-stakes mission. It’s a bumpy, heartfelt journey to protect a lifelong bond and discover if this “old” classic still has a few surprises left under the hood.
Ali
Director: Adnan Al Rajeev
Country: Bangladesh, Running Time: 15 min
In a coastal town, women are not allowed to sing. A teenager joins a singing competition for a chance to move to the city, while hiding his true voice in a sinister way.
Blessings (Maaybaapache Aashiriwaad)
Director: Apurva Bardapurkar
Country: India, Running Time: 24 min
Overprotective parents will go to any length to protect their son’s childhood secret from his girlfriend.
Burnt Orange
Director: Sharmila Ray
Country: USA, Running Time: 11 min
A woman behind on her student loan payments is haunted by debt collectors, but one collector wants to harvest something more than just money.
Deva Aaj Pan Vhay North American Premiere
Director: Amol Jalandhar Jadhav
Country: India, Running Time: 15 min
Deva Aaj Pan Vhay follows the journey of Deva, a playful and inquisitive young boy living in a rural village. Each day, he braves rough terrain and harsh weather to reach school, where he not only learns from books but from life itself. Through his school lessons, playful interactions, and small adventures, Deva begins to understand kindness, resilience, and the true value of education.
Family Man
Director: Kalani Gacon
Country: Nepal, Running Time: 17 min
During a storm in a remote Nepalese village, a mysterious man finds refuge in a house of a family haunted by their father’s disappearance years before.
Hills Don’t Dance Alone
Director: Shubham Negi
Country: India, Running Time: 24 min
At a school in the Himalayas, fifteen-year-old Sachin is bullied for cross-dressing in a folk dance performance. Anju, the middle-aged vice principal of the school, steps in, but it unravels more than she anticipated.
Jasmine That Blooms in Autumn
Director: Chandradeep Das
Country: Running Time: 14 min
Two women fall in love at a decrepit old-age home in the autumn of their lives. Both are aware of the repercussions of such a revelation in a society proscribing homosexuality; therefore, they exchange messages and gifts in secret.
Kanippu (The Prediction) North American Premiere
Director: Rishi Chandna
Country: India, Running Time: 24 min
A grieving boatman and an earnest meteorologist share their knowledge of the seas and weather, but find themselves helpless in the face of unpredictable climate.
Little Fishies
Director: Mallika Juneja
Country: India, Running Time: 20 min
Little Fishies follows 13-year-old Raya on the day of her father’s funeral ceremony. Faced with the absurd atmosphere of a grieving Punjabi household, Raya decides to break free by embarking on a mission to take her sister to the beach, against her family’s wishes.
New Moon Rain
Director: Santosh Dahal
Country: USA, Running Time: 17 min
A devoted father’s life in America is disrupted when traditional discipline methods cause him to face harsh accusations and community judgment.
Showtime
Director: Vivek Menon
Country: USA, Running Time: 14 min
On the day of her first live performance, a singer’s day turns upside down when a simple ask from her mom spirals out of control and she struggles to balance her day job and her dreams.
Squat N Stool
Director: Ramgopal Rajagopalan
Country: Canada, Running Time: 10:20 min
When Ria visits her boyfriend’s parents for the first time, she’s determined to make a great impression-but there’s one problem. She’s left behind her squat stool. As the days pass and desperation grows, her increasingly absurd attempts to find a substitute lead to near-disasters, awkward encounters, and mounting suspicion from Ben’s father, William.
Texas Jaanu International Premiere
Director: Aliza Khan
Country: USA, Running Time: 18 min
Adrift in her new life in Austin, a newlywed cinephile from India befriends a ragtag trio of experimental filmmakers, complicating her relationship with her white-collar husband.
Waagh (The Leopard) US Premiere
Director: Mukti Krishan
Country: India, Running Time: 20 min
Mumbai, the only city in the world with a forest at its heart, is where leopards roam beside highways and high-rises. When one is found dead at a newly redeveloped housing society, 8-year-old Apu’s inner world begins to fracture. What starts as unease spirals into paranoia, as small everyday violences – dismissive adults, buried tensions, unseen fears — begin to close in.
DOCUMENTARY SHORTS
P For Paparazzi
Director: Divya Hemant Kharnare
Country: India, Running Time: 26 min
Amidst the chaos of crazy crowds, Manoj, an established paparazzi from Nepal, faces off against fellow photographers in a race to capture the most sensational photos. Despite the experience and connections, he confronts the harsh reality of his brother’s deteriorating health.