Songs of Forgotten Trees, the debut feature by filmmaker Anuparna Roy, has been acquired for worldwide sales by the acclaimed French company Celluloid Dreams. The film—presented by Anurag Kashyap—is the only Indian selection in the Orizzonti Competition section at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival, where it will premiere on September 1.
Celluloid Dreams, the international sales company, has represented landmark works including Jafar Panahi’s 3 Faces (2018) and No Bears (2022), as well as the early masterpieces of Hirokazu Kore-eda, including Still Walking (2008), Nobody Knows (2004), After Life (1998), and Maborosi (1995).
As per a press release shared by the makers, Songs of Forgotten Trees is “set against the restless rhythms of Mumbai and tells the story of Thooya, a migrant and aspiring actress who survives through beauty, wit, and uneasy compromises, and Swetha, a corporate worker who becomes her flatmate. Their shared space evolves into an unexpected bond of empathy, tested by desire, survival, and unspoken wounds. What emerges is a tender story of kinship in a fractured world.”
The film stars Naaz Shaikh and Sumi Baghel, alongside Bhushan Shimpi, Ravi Maan, Pritam Pilania, and Lovely Singh. Behind the camera, the film brings together cinematographer Debjit Samanta, editor Ashish Patel, and composer Nishant Ramteke.
Songs of Forgotten Trees is produced by Flip Films (Ranjan Singh), River Tale Films (Bibhanshu Rai), Romil Casting (Romil Modi), and Nube Studio – Nube Cirrus (Navin Shetty), in association with Khan & Kumar Media (Sharib Khan, Vikas Kumar).
Speaking about the acquisition, Saliha Guemraoui, CEO of Celluloid Dreams, said,“Celluloid Dreams is thrilled to support such an ambitious and captivating project as Songs of Forgotten Trees, which aligns perfectly with our editorial slant, as well as start a new and ambitious partnership.”
Filmmaker Anuparna Roy added, “I am pleased that Celluloid has partnered with our film, and I have full faith in them that they will take it to the world, in the best possible way.”
Producer Ranjan Singh said, “We are glad that Saliha and her team at Celluloid saw the film and have onboarded it. With their proven record of excellent films in the past, we are excited to start this journey with them.”
