After
a big world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival last year, Sabar Bonda (Cactus Pears) is finally coming home to India. The Marathi film, written and directed by Rohan Parashuram Kanawade, will be released on Netflix on February 6. Kanawade’s semi-autobiographical directorial debut is a sensitively told story about a man named Anand who returns to his hometown in Maharashtra and reconnects with his childhood friend. Sabar Bonda was the first Marathi-language film ever to premiere at Sundance and even won the World Cinema Grand Jury prize. Since its premiere, the Marathi film has been screened around the world.
Sabar Bonda to premiere on Netflix
The award-winning film will finally be available to the Indian public after its successful film festival run. In fact, before its global Netflix premiere, Sabar Bonda had a screening at the Kala Ghoda festival in Mumbai on February 5. The official page of the Marathi film announced on their Instagram Story that it would be debuting on Netflix on February 6.
Starring Bhushaan Manoj and Suraaj Suman, Sabar Bonda had its world premiere on January 26, 2025, in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition section at Sundance. It went on to win the Grand Jury Prize Dramatic award.
Sabar Bonda story
Bhushaan Manoj plays Anand, a 30-year-old man from the city who returns to his village in Maharastra after the death of his father. Along with his mother, Suman (Jayshri Jagtap), Anand must stay for the 10-day mourning period and complete certain rituals. Back home, the rest of the family continues to question him about his single status and lack of marriage prospects. Later, he also reconnects with his childhood friend Balya (Suraaj Suman), who is now a farmer and, like him, is also unmarried. The Marathi film addresses queerness in rural India in a delicate and nuanced manner.
Rohan Parashuram Kanawade on Sabar Bonda
The Mumbai filmmaker Kanawade, who started out studying interior design, was inspired to make the film after the death of his father, who supported his filmmaking journey. He shot the film at his uncle's village, Kharshinde, in the Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra, where his mother grew up. Sabar Bonda was shot from November 2023 to January 2024.The first-time filmmaker also revealed that he cast theatre actors in the lead roles and, interestingly, even studied acting together. Veteran actress Jagtap comes from Marathi TV, and this was her first big role.
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