No star power. No studio backing. No OTT deal.

And yet, Nukkad Naatak is heading to theatres on February 27, powered almost entirely by belief.

What began as an IIT Kanpur graduate’s epiphany on an academic campus has grown into one of the most unusual indie journeys in recent years. Written and directed by debutant filmmaker Tanmaya Shekhar, Nukkad Naatak is not just a film about common people — it is a film made by them, with them, and for them.

The film has already won big at film festivals. It bagged the Special Jury Award at the Kolkata International Film Festival 2024 and the Best Debut Film trophy at Indo-German Film Week 2025.

But despite national and international acclaim, no major production house came forward to support it. OTT platforms refused to stream it. And then the makers — Tanmaya, lead actress Molshri and producer Medha Khanna — decided to build their audience from scratch.

This is where the story gets interesting.

A film about ‘two Indias’ 

A still from ‘Nukkad Naatak’ (All pictures: Sourced by the correspondent)

Speaking to The Telegraph Online, Tanmaya Shekhar reflected on the moment when the film was born. He grew up on the IIT Kanpur campus, where his parents were professors. After graduating from IIT, he moved to the US for higher studies. The pandemic brought him back home. He watched his mother teach children from a nearby basti and he became painfully aware of the stark contrast that exists between institutional privilege and the realities of underprivileged children. This gave birth to the idea for Nukkad Naatak.

The film follows two expelled college students who must enrol five children from a nearby slum into school to earn their way back. LGBTQ+ representation also emerges as a key theme as the story unfolds.

Theatre and experiments 

Molshri and Shivang Rajpal in ‘Nukkad Naatak’

Tanmaya discovered Molshri while watching a play in Mumbai. Impressed by her performance, he approached her and fellow theatre actors Shivang Rajpal and Danish Husain.

“None of them were mainstream stars. That was the point. I was looking for real talent, not just names,” said Tanmaya.

The unconventional choices did not stop there. Cinematographer Ihjaz Aziz, editor Sruthy Sukumaran and several crew members who were previously assistants stepped into lead roles for the first time. The music for the film is composed by Parthhesh Menon.

With no producers yet, Molshri and Tanmaya locked a date on which they would begin shooting — March 3, 2023. “Even here we were deviating from conventional filmmaking. It was as radical as it can get,” said Molshri.

And though they had no Bollywood biggies backing them, they had their families. Tanmaya’s father, who was then the dean of IIT Dhanbad, ensured that they could use the campus for shooting their film. Tanmaya’s family provided lodging to cast and crew members who were not from Dhanbad. And even Tanmaya’s grandmother contributed in her own little way — cooking meals for all cast and crew members on the set so that they remained energetic, healthy and focussed.

“So, we knew who the key actors were. But we needed actors for supporting roles. And you would not believe so many locals turned up, willing to try their luck at acting and give expression to their long-suppressed passion,” shared Tanmaya.

Locals from nearby Bagula basti also stepped into supporting roles, including 13-year-old Nirmala Hazra, who plays Chhoti, a girl fighting for her right to education.

“She was a natural. I explained the scene to her and her lines around 20 minutes before we began shooting each day, and she could execute everything impeccably,” said Molshri.

Even passersby became actors. “A few people came on scooters and said they wanted to act. One of them fit a character perfectly, so we cast him,” Molshri recalled.

The filming was completed in 40 days. But, post-production took nearly a year.

Nukkad naatak to promote 'Nukkad Naatak' 

Team 'Nukkad Naatak' at Kolkata’s Park Street

When traditional distribution doors shut, the makers turned to nukkad naatak — quite literally.

They launched a viral Instagram series titled How to Enter Bollywood, which revolves around two outsiders trying to break into the industry. The series clocked over 15 million views across 25 episodes. But they did not stop there. They took promotions beyond the digital platforms.

Molshri and Tanmaya travelled to cities including Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bhopal, Indore and Kolkata, holding posters at public spots, conducting open mics and directly engaging with audiences.

On the bright side, the strategy, indeed, seems to be working. The trailer has crossed five lakh views on YouTube within a month. Songs from the film have also garnered significant views on YouTube and social media platforms.

Recently certified UA 16+ by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) due to its LGBTQ+ themes, the film promises to be an inclusive, socially conscious narrative that challenges both class and identity hierarchies. Advance booking for Nukkad Naatak is likely to begin on February 25, said the makers.

Independent filmmakers rarely get to dream of houseful shows. Molshri and Tanmaya are dreaming of 100, and they are loud and clear about that.

And if their journey proves anything, it is this — sometimes, the most radical way to enter Bollywood is the sheer audacity of dreamers to be able to refuse to accept rejection.