City’s Mane makes waves at Cannes

 

 

 

 

A Malayalam thriller ‘Yamalokham’ co-produced by a Nagpur girl got featured in the Cannes Film Festival 2025, making the city proud. What makes the achievement more profound is that the girl, Priyanshi Mane, was the lead actor in the short film. She portrayed the protagonist in this two-hour feature film which featured in prestigious Marché du Film. Marché du Film is a section where selected movies from across the globe are premiered. Mane has co-produced ‘Yamalokham’ under the banner of Grandma Motion Pictures. The film created the buzz at Cannes as without the backing of star power or a big budget, the film has a powerful ensemble cast including Naga Mahesh, Chirayath Lona Jolly, Priyanshi, and Hardeep Singh (also the co-producer, writer, and music composer of the movie). Mane’s eyes light up with passion as she speaks about Cannes, the power of storytelling, and the importance of inclusiveness. Going down the memory lane, Mane recalls her childhood where she would sit in front of television and tell her mother, “I want to go inside this box through those wires.”

 

Years later, Mane entered the industry with shows on Doordarshan, Sahyadri Marathi and ETV Marathi. And from there, there was no looking back. “I had the privilege of working with the legendary Pandit Satyadev Dubey and Chandra Prakash Dwivedi. This gave me confidence to dream big and wanted to produce something. I decided to use my savings and also sought financial help from my family and friends. Initially, they were hesitant, but when they saw my determination they wholeheartedly supported me,” adds Mane. For Mane, her experience at Cannes is a dream come true. “Cannes was amazing! Beyond anything I could have imagined. Our film received a warm response. We were also invited to multiple international film festivals across several countries. Teams from Brazil, France and Norway were spellbound by the story and the direction of our movie and invited us. Film-makers from Taiwan, Morocco, and Jordan appreciated how ‘Yamalokham’ navigates human psyche and how it challenges viewers’ conscience and their intellect and they are willing to produce my next venture.

 

Apart from the foreigners, our ‘Bharat Pavilion’ at the Cannes were very impressed by our work and offered support for my future movies,” says Mane who is eagerly waiting for Yamalokham’s world-wide release in September. On a lighter note, Mane shares her encounter with delicacies from all round the world. “Cannes is considered the biggest film festival and my team is blessed to have started our international journey from such a big platform. Today, when I see my film being appreciated on a global platform, every sleepless night, every sacrifice seems absolutely worth it,” says the young and promising girl. For Mane, her hometown Nagpur, a multi-cultural city, has taught her the importance of inclusiveness. “Yamalokham is about a village girl named Nandini from a small town in Kerala. I chose to make the film in Malayalam because the character’s background demanded that authenticity. It was a conscious choice. My next movie will be in Marathi and we have already started working on it.

 

Whether it’s Punjabi, Kashmiri, Marathi, or Malayalam, if a story demands a particular language, I’ll go with it. I don’t see myself as a Bollywood actor or producer but as an Indian storyteller. My culture of my city has taught me that storytelling should have no boundaries and language should be just a medium of storytelling,” adds Mane as she aims to break barriers and uplift others, especially girls from her hometown who aspire to enter this industry. “Follow your dreams and heart and don’t wait for the perfect opportunity. Take the first step and if you are honest everything else will follow. I am always willing to support such talent and will do whatever I can to help my Nagpur chi mulgi take that leap,” advises the beacon of hope for every dreamer battling odds. Beyond anything I could have imagined.