Two childhood friends struggle to land a government job in a small town in India, in the trailer for Neeraj Ghaywan’s Homebound, dropped by the makers on Wednesday.

Dropped on Wednesday, the two-minute-52-second trailer introduces Chandan (Vishal Jethwa) and Shoaib (Ishaan Khattar), who aspire for a prosperous life and earn respect for themselves and their respective families. But their identities — of belonging to backward communities — act against their wishes.

Chandan and Shoaib apply for the position of a police officer but the odds are stacked against them. There are only 3,500 posts available, and the number of applicants is over 25 crore. As they get closer to their dream, desperation and personal conflict begin to test the strength of their bond.

The trailer also introduces Janhvi Kapoor as Sudha Bharti, a PhD aspirant, who played Chandan’s love interest in the film.

The film’s story was inspired by an essay, Taking Amrit Home (now retitled A Friendship, a Pandemic and a Death Beside the Highway), by Kashmiri journalist Basharat Peer. It was published in the New York Times in 2020. The piece recounts the story of two young migrant workers in Surat, who were caught in the Covid-19 lockdown in March 2020.

Legendary Hollywood filmmaker Martin Scorsese serves as the executive producer for the film, jointly produced by Dharma Productions and Sikhya Entertainment.

Homebound had its world premiere at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival in the Un Certain Regard category in May. It is Ghaywan's second directorial after 2015’s Masaan, which also premiered in the same section at Cannes and won two awards.

The film received a nine-minute standing ovation at the Cannes Film Festival. Also, it has won two awards for best film and best director at the International Film Festival of Melbourne.

Recently, Homebound also bagged the second runner-up trophy in the People’s Choice International category at the Toronto International Film Festival.

Homebound is scheduled to release theatrically on September 26 worldwide.