‘Gripping and powerfully feminist crime procedural’ – Time Out
‘Gripping, sinewy police procedural set in northern India’ – Screen Daily
Watch the film trailer here.
Distributed by Vertigo Releasing and Civic Studios, the critically acclaimed crime thriller, Santosh, written and directed by award-winning British-Indian filmmaker, Sandhya Suri, will be releasing in UK cinemas on 21st March 2025.
Starring Shahana Goswami (A Suitable Boy, Rock On!!, Midnight’s Children) and Sunita Rajwar (Gullak, Kedarnath); and produced by Mike Goodridge (Love is Strange), James Bowsher (The Night), Balthazar de Ganay (The Summer House) and Alan McAlex (Masaan), the film has garnered unanimous international plaudit, with 14 award nominations and seven wins including a BAFTA nomination for Outstanding Debut By A British Writer, Director Or Producer; British Independent Film Awards (BIFA) win for Best Screenplay; and recognition by the National Board of Review within the Top 10 Independent Films of the Year. The film also earned a nomination at Cannes Film Festival 2024 in the Un Certain Regard category; was nominated for the Sutherland Award for Best Film Feature at BFI London Film Festival; and was the UK’s official submission for the Best International Feature Film category at the Academy Awards, advancing to the top 15 films long list.
A government scheme sees newly widowed Santosh inherit her husband’s job as a police constable in the rural badlands of Northern India. When a low-caste girl is murdered, Santosh is pulled into the investigation by charismatic feminist inspector Sharma.
Santosh marks the feature-film debut of writer-director, Sandhya Suri, following her documentaries, I for India and Around India With A Movie Camera, and the short film, The Field, which won Best International Short at Toronto International Film Festival in 2018 and BAFTA-nominated for Best Short Film in 2019.
The genesis for Santosh came when Suri was in India, working with various non-governmental
Organisations and came across an image of female protestors, following the Nirbhaya case in 2012. As she describes, “There was an image of a huge crowd of angry female protestors, faces contorted with rage, and a line of female police officers, forcing them back. One of these police officers had such an enigmatic expression. I became fascinated with her. What separates her from those protesting, and what power does her uniform wield over those without it? Exploring this violence and this woman’s power within it felt exciting.”
Santosh releases in UK & Irish cinemas on 21st March 2025 distributed by Vertigo Releasing.
