Women in Film India, founded by Oscar winner Guneet Monga Kapoor (“The Elephant Whisperer”) has partnered with Jio Studios, the media and content arm of billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries, to launch a scholarship sending mid-career Indian women producers to the Producers Network at the Cannes Film Market.
The initiative, run in collaboration with the market, is now open for applications, with a deadline of April 5. Selected recipients will attend the Producers Network Breakfast series at market, which runs May 13–18 in Cannes. The platform draws over 370 producers each year and is considered one of the premier access points at the festival for forging international co-production relationships and connecting with financiers and collaborators worldwide.
Jyoti Deshpande, president of Jio Studios, the outfit behind the smash hit “Dhurandhar” franchise, said, “We believe the future of cinema is being shaped by more inclusive voices, and at Jio Studios, that belief has translated into consciously backing women storytellers, both behind the camera and in front of it – because representation isn’t just about who we see on screen, but who gets to build what we see. The Producers Network at Cannes is where global film conversations and collaborations begin, and we want to see more Indian women producers in those rooms, building, leading, and taking their stories to the world.”
For Monga Kapoor, the scholarship is rooted in her own experience at the Producers Network. “The Producers Network has given me some of my most formative learning as a producer; the connections, the perspective, the sense of what’s possible on a global scale. I want that for my peers. With this scholarship, we’re making that access real for women producers who are ready for it.”
The partnership with Jio Studios marks an expansion of a program WIF India first launched last year, when the organization made its Cannes debut by supporting three women producers – Rucha Pathak, Tillotama Shome, and Dimpy Agarwal – to participate in the Producers Network. WIF India’s development and programming head Rabia Chopra said the organization was “delighted to welcome Jio Studios on board from this year onwards,” adding that the collaboration with the Cannes Film Market reinforces “the mission we are building together.”
To be considered, applicants must be India-based women producers currently developing a feature-length project, with at least one theatrically released feature or documentary to their name from the past four years, a valid passport, and availability to travel to Cannes in May. The selection process will weigh each candidate’s industry track record alongside the originality of their project and its prospects for international circulation and co-production.
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