Mumbai– Aditya Kripalani’s latest feature film, I’m Not An Actor, has been officially selected for screening at the 14th DC South Asian Film Festival, set to take place in Washington D.C. from September 5 to 7.
Starring Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Chitrangada Satarupa, the film had its world premiere at the 2025 Cinequest Film Festival in San Jose, USA.
Kripalani described the unique nature of the shoot: “Each day, we called ‘Action’ and ‘Cut’ at the same time across two continents. Our goal was to maintain the emotional connection between the actors, keeping the conversations as raw and authentic as possible.”
The film, described as the first live-shot feature between two countries, involved a challenging 30-day shoot with one actor in Frankfurt and the other in Mumbai. Despite the technology, the focus remained on preserving the emotional depth of the performance. “America has been kind to our film—world premieres at CineQuest, the East Coast premiere in New York, and now Washington. We’re thrilled to be traveling to the U.S. again, this time as the opening film,” Kripalani added.
Siddiqui, speaking about the upcoming screening, shared his excitement about the festival: “It’s a very warm, cozy festival. They care deeply about Asian cinema, and it brings us joy that our film is the opening feature. The experience of shooting with an actor in another country, thousands of miles away, via video calls, was new for me. At some point, we just focused on the emotions, forgetting about the technology.”
Chitrangada, who plays opposite Siddiqui, expressed her admiration for working with him: “Acting alongside Nawazuddin, whose work I’ve admired for years, was a dream come true. The script gave us characters with so much depth, and the layered situations made it even more special. We saw the audience react so emotionally in New York, and we’re excited to see how the Washington crowd responds to our film.” (Source: IANS)
