Priyanka Chopra Jonas has come on board as an executive producer of We Were Here, an Oscar-qualified Indian short film directed by Pranav Bhasin. Tony-winning activist and playwright V, formerly known as Eve Ensler, has also joined the film in the same capacity.
The two join actor Andrew Scott as the mockumentary heads into awards season following a strong festival run. The New Yorker has acquired the short and will premiere it on the magazine’s YouTube channels.
Written and directed by Bhasin, We Were Here is set in a small Indian town and follows three retirees who become convinced that machines are taking away human jobs. Their response is to launch a protest in which they pose as household appliances. Things become more complicated when one
of their children takes up a job at an artificial intelligence company.
Priyanka Chopra Calls The Film ‘Refreshing’ And ‘Witty’
Priyanka said she was drawn to the film’s treatment of a subject that has become increasingly relevant.
“This film offers a refreshing, witty take on a subject that feels very timely. I jumped at the opportunity to come on board as an executive producer to amplify this creative team and ensure their brilliant, original vision gets the spotlight it deserves,” she said.
The film stars Satish Kashyap, Devendra Dodke and Arindol Bagchi as Mr. Bagchi, Mr. Pimple and Mr. Ganguli. Shubham Kujur, Kalpana Gagdekar and Yash Gonsai are also part of the cast.
Gonsai has produced the film through Sunshine Pictures along with Dheer Momaya and Dar Gai. Aarti Lohia and SPLF Media present the project.
Its executive producer lineup also includes Peter S. Kim and Nalini Sharma of Basement Video, Neha Kaul, Megha Kadakia, Priya Giri Desai and Shruti Ganguly of Prism Entertainment, Shivani Pandya Malhotra, Film Companion Studios, Anjula Acharia and Pan Nalin.
Devaiah Bopanna, Earlyman Film, Rahul Bharti, Supavitra Babul and Vaibhav Bundhoo are attached as co-producers.
We Were Here Has Won More Than 20 Festival Awards
Before bringing Priyanka and V on board, We Were Here had already travelled extensively on the festival circuit.
The film has screened at more than 80 festivals and collected over 20 awards.
It began its run at the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival, where it won the Canal+ Prize. At SXSW, the film took home the audience award for best narrative short as well as the Redbreast Unhidden Award.
Its win at Palm Springs International ShortFest proved particularly significant. The film was named best live-action short under 15 minutes and best comedy short, with the former making it eligible for consideration at the Academy Awards.
The film is now Oscar-qualified and moving into awards season with an expanded group of executive producers.
Pranav Bhasin On The Film’s Unusual Beginning
For Bhasin, the idea started from something deliberately small and comic.
“‘We Were Here’ started as a small, silly idea about three uncles trying to stop the spread of AI, and somewhere along the way, I fell in love with them, their friendships, and their stubborn resilience,” he said.
The filmmaker explained that the mockumentary format allowed him to stay close to real people and locations while still leaning into the absurdity of the premise.
“In India, reality is often stranger than anything you could write, and the mockumentary format let me keep the film rooted in real people and real places, while exploring just how absurd things can get,” Bhasin added.
He also admitted that the film’s Oscar qualification still feels surreal.
“Now that the film is Oscar-qualified, I’m still figuring out how to process it. I made it the way I make everything. I followed an idea that felt wild to me, all the way to the end. I was never sure it would make sense to anyone outside my head,” he said.
Bhasin added that having Andrew Scott, Priyanka Chopra Jonas and V among the executive producers was difficult to fully process as a young filmmaker.
“As a young filmmaker, I find it pretty surreal to have a tribe of highly accomplished and committed EPs, including Andrew Scott, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, and V. We’re all really excited to find creative ways to get this film to wider audiences,” he said.
Who Is Pranav Bhasin?
Bhasin, who is from Mumbai, began directing films at the age of 13 and had made his first series for TVF by 17.
His short Wolf of Chawl Street won the Silver Dimensions prize at the Mumbai film festival in 2017, while New Year’s Eve was named best short the following year.
His other work includes Taylor’s Version and Screaming on the Fly. His films have premiered at SXSW and appeared on platforms including Mubi, Short of the Week and Vimeo Staff Picks.
Bhasin is also an alumnus of Vanishing Angle’s Short-to-Feature Lab from 2020 and the Zurich Film Festival Academy from 2022.
Producer Yash Gonsai, meanwhile, previously served as an executive producer on Pan Nalin’s Last Film Show, which reached the international feature shortlist at the 95th Academy Awards. More recently, he worked with Dharma Productions on Neeraj Ghaywan’s Homebound, which debuted at Cannes and was shortlisted at the 98th Academy Awards.
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