From a rural queer romance to a female-led superhero epic, from caste politics to AI and indigenous knowledge systems, these five films — all homegrown, all fresh, all boundary-pushing — are exactly what your watchlist needs. L: Grass Root Film Company R: Dharma Productions
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The Homegrown Weekend Watchlist: Homebound, Badgirl, & More

From Sabar Bonda to Lokah, here are 5 must-watch films this weekend that showcase the bold new directions of Indian cinema.

Drishya

If your weekend plans involve endlessly scrolling OTT carousels before rewatching something familiar on Netflix, stop. Don’t do that to yourself. 2025 has been an incredible year for films — from Sinners to CompanionSuperman to Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning, and Weapons to One Battle After Another. After years of struggling at the box office, it feels like the film industry is finally on the rebound in 2025. Indian cinema is no exception. From a rural queer romance to a female-led superhero epic, from caste politics to AI and indigenous knowledge systems, these five films — all homegrown, all fresh, all boundary-pushing — are exactly what your watchlist needs.

Sabar Bonda (dir. Rohan Kanawade, 2025) 

Sabar Bonda (Cactus Pears) is the first-ever Marathi language feature to premiere at the Sundance Film Festival. It’s also the only feature from South Asia to compete in the 2025 edition.

The Sundance Grand Jury winner Sabar Bonda is a contemporary queer love story set in a traditional Maharashtrian village. It follows Anand, a city man who, during the ten-day mourning period after his father’s death, rekindles a bond with his childhood friend, a local farmer struggling to remain unmarried. By casting local actors and filming in his ancestral village, writer-director Rohan Kanawade’s semi-autobiographical film offers a fresh perspective on queer love and hope. It challenges the misconception that queerness is exclusive to urban or Western contexts, broadening queer representation in Indian and global cinema by authentically depicting rural Indian relationships. Learn more about the film here.

Lokah Chapter 1: Chandra (dir. Dominic Arun, 2025)

'Lokah Chapter 1' is both an entertainment milestone and a cultural intervention. It’s proof that Indian superhero films need not mimic Western models or repackage violent, hypermasculine fantasies in capes and cowls.

Dominic Arun’s Lokah Chapter 1 is both a milestone in entertainment and a cultural breakthrough for Indian regional cinema. It proves that Indian superhero films do not need to imitate Western models or repackage violent, hypermasculine fantasies in capes and cowls. Instead, they can originate from India’s rich regional folklores, mythologies, traditions, and the real lives of women who seldom find themselves at the centre of such stories. By rejecting the problematic formula of current pan-India blockbusters and presenting a female protagonist who is both human and superhuman, the team behind Lokah has opened the door to a cinematic universe that feels genuinely fresh and deeply relevant. It is a universe worth celebrating—and absolutely worth watching closely as it unfolds. Learn more about the film here.

Homebound (dir. Neeraj Ghaywan, 2025)

A decade after ‘Masaan’, Neeraj Ghaywan returns to the big screen with his sophomore feature ‘Homebound’. Based on a New York Times article by Delhi-based journalist Basharat Peer, the film follows two lifelong friends from a small village in central India who dream of becoming police officers — only to find their bond tested by caste, class, religion, and their desperate search for the dignity they have long been denied. ‘Homebound’ is India’s official entry for the Best International Feature Film category at the 2026 Academy Awards. ‘Homebound’ is currently playing in theatres.

Bad Girl (dir. Varsha Bharath, 2025) 

'Bad Girl' lingers in the body of anyone who has ever been told that desiring too much is unbecoming.

There is always a girl at the centre: one who asks many questions and feels deeply, unable to learn her own rules. Indian cinema rarely shows her kindly, often punishing or reforming her. Varsha Bharath’s ‘Bad Girl’ refuses to give her a neat ending. The film follows Ramya, the eponymous bad girl masterfully played by Anjali Sivaraman, as she transitions from teenage restlessness to thirtysomething weariness, embodying women who are promised liberation but given rules as choices. The Tamil film, produced by Vetri Maaran’s Grass Root Film, won the NETPAC Award at Rotterdam and travelled to Shanghai, Valencia, and Toulouse, collecting prizes. Its true achievement is how it resonates with anyone who has been told that desiring too much is shameful. Learn more about the film here.

Humans in the Loop

Humans In The Loop

Aranya Sahay’s ‘Humans in the Loop’ leads an inquiry into the kind of values we’re imparting to the algorithms that are quickly becoming a part of our future. Set in a remote village in Jharkhand, the film centres on Nehma, played by Sonal Madhushankar, a woman from the Oraon tribal community who navigates a precarious position between the intimate knowledge systems of her culture and the opaque demands of artificial intelligence. Learn more about the film here.

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