Folk horror set in Northeast India to premiere at Rotterdam film fest

Bhargav Saikia’s directorial debut feature ‘Bokshi’ (witch in Nepali), a folk horror fantasy shot in the deep forests of Sikkim in Northeast India, will have its world premiere at the prestigious International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) 2025.

The film is selected in the ‘Harbour’ section, which is named after Rotterdam’s port city identity and focuses on a wide range of contemporary cinema from across the world. The festival will be held from January 30 to February 9, 2025.

Bhargav earlier wrote and directed an award-winning fantasy short, which was an adaptation of Ruskin Bond’s ‘The ‘Black Cat’ starring Tom Alter and Shernaz Patel.

“I am particularly drawn to stories that explore life and the human condition through the prism of the fantastical and the macabre. ‘Bokshi’ is one such story that follows the coming-of-age journey of a teenage girl haunted by the demons of her past,” the director said.