Bollywood actors Richa Chadha and Ali Fazal have joined Secrets of a Mountain Serpent, an upcoming feature by filmmaker Nidhi Saxena, as producers through their Pushing Buttons Studios.
Starring Trimala Adhikari and Adil Hussain, the movie is set to have its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival 2025. Set in a remote Himalayan town during the 1990s, the film tells the intimate story of Barkha (Adhikari), a schoolteacher whose husband is posted at the border.
“In a place where most men are gone and days echo with silence, Barkha finds herself drawn to Manik Guho (Hussain), a mysterious outsider who disrupts the fragile balance of waiting, restraint, and myth,” read the official logline.
Fazal and Chadda, who launched Pushing Buttons Studios in 2023 and produced acclaimed drama Girls Will Be Girls, said they were immediately drawn to the story of Secrets of a Mountain Serpent.
“This is a story rooted in myth and yet is startlingly relevant today. At PBS, we believe in backing storytellers who take creative risks and Nidhi has crafted something singular, poetic, and soulful,” they added.
Saxena, who also wrote the film, said the movie is about women who choose to risk everything and follow their desires, shedding the burden of moralities imposed upon them by the world.
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“I was looking for kindred collaborators and this feels like a meeting of minds and hearts. It also feels like we no longer need to borrow men’s voices to tell our stories. We have our own voice, which is strong, with femininity,” she added.
The project was selected and funded by Venice’s Biennale College Cinema program. Saxena’s debut feature, Sad Letters of an Imaginary Woman, premiered at the 2024 Busan International Film Festival to great acclaim. The Venice Film Festival is scheduled from August 27 to September 6.