After a historic win at Sundance Film Festival, Rohan Kanawade’s Sabar Bonda (Cactus Pears) has now won the Audience Choice Award for Best Feature at the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA). The film also received an Honorary Mention for Acting from the IFFLA jury.

Previously, the film became the first Indian film to win the Grand Jury Prize in World Cinema Dramatic Competition at the Sundance Film Festival.

Speaking about the win, the producers said, “From the very beginning, we knew Sabar Bonda was a quiet force.”

“This recognition is not just for our team but for the entire ecosystem of independent cinema,” they added.

Sabar Bonda follows Anand, a city-dweller grappling with personal loss and familial pressures, as he embarks on a 10-day mourning ritual in his ancestral village. Amid the rugged beauty of western India, he finds solace and connection with Balya, a childhood friend facing similar societal expectations.

The film is produced by Neeraj Churi (UK), Mohamed Khaki (Canada), Kaushik Ray (UK), Naren Chandavarkar (India), Sidharth Meer (India), and Hareesh Reddypalli (India), with co-producer and actor Jim Sarbh and associate producer Rajesh Parwatkar.