'Animal' Lyricist Duo's 'Dukaan' Premieres at Yokohama Film Festival

The film was showcased in Yokohama, Japan, with its red carpet on May 2. This was followed by an official screening on May 4 at the Betty & Deck Theater.

Talking about their experience, the filmmakers said, "It was a fantastic experience to see the Japanese audience receive the film so well. This is an authentic, reputed festival and not an easy one to get selected into, which makes this even more special."

Set against the backdrop of Gujarat, "Dukaan" sheds light on the emotionally complex world of surrogacy.

The project has Monika Panwar, Sikandar Kher, Soham Majumdar, and Monali Thakur in key roles, along with others. It further has a special cameo appearance by Vrajesh Hirjee.

The screening was followed up by a speech and an engaging Q&A session with the audience.

Speaking during the session, the filmmakers also opened up about the inspiration behind "Dukaan".

"As screenwriters, the story of a surrogate resonates deeply with us. In many ways, we too are creators who must hand over our 'baby' our script as part of a work-for-hire process, often without ownership. That emotional parallel became a powerful starting point," they revealed.

It must be noted that the writers and lyricists turned directors Siddharth Singh and Garima Wahal are credited for their work in movies such as "Kabir Singh", "Toilet- Ek Prem Katha", "Bajirao Mastaani", and "Animal", to name just a few.

"Dukaan" has been produced by A Jhunjhunwala and S.K. Ahluwalia under the banner of Waveband Productions and Siddharth-Garima's Kalamkaar Picture Productions.

The technical crew of the drama has Anirban Chatterjee as the cinematographer, with Satya Sharma heading the editing department.

The music of the film has been scored by Shreyas Puranik.

- IANS