The Hindu Net Desk – The Hindu

Actor couple Ali Fazal and Richa Chadha have ventured into film production with the launch of Pushing Buttons Studios. In a statement, the duo said that the first film to be bankrolled under their new production banner is Girls Will Be Girls, written and directed by debutant Shuchi Talati. Set in a small Himalayan town, the film follows the story of a 16-year-old girl Mira and her mother. “The mother and daughter’s fraught but ultimately loving relationship is the beating heart of the film,” the statement adds.

Says Richa, “The world that Shuchi has created is relatable, often cruel but never hopeless. Its honest awkwardness will make you chuckle, not weep. The dynamic between mother and daughter is under-explored in Indian and world cinema,” adding, “The mother in our story is complicated, grey and not a martyr.”

Ali adds: “I am excited that our studio will enter the market with a progressive, female-led story.” The film’s director, Shuchi, is an Indian filmmaker based out of New York. “I like my work to challenge dominant narratives around gender, sexuality and the Indian identity,” she says. Alongside Richa and Ali, Girls Will Be Girls is jointly funded by Sanjay Gulati of Crawling Angel Films and Claire Chassagne of Dolce Vita Films.