Slow Burn Suspense Drama Uljhan/The Knot to Stream on Open Theatre

The film, produced by Kartikeya Narayan Singh—who previously backed the critically acclaimed Soni—has received numerous awards and has been screened at prestigious festivals such as the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles, Shanghai International Film Festival, New York Indian Film Festival, and Indian Film Festival of Melbourne.

Talking about the film, director Ashish Pant stated, "Uljhan is a slow-burn suspense drama, steeped in realism, that aims to entertain. The story, set in Lucknow, follows an upper-middle-class couple, Shirish and Geeta, whose lives unravel after they accidentally run over someone. The film explores the resulting tensions related to class conflict, materialism, and guilt in contemporary urban Indian society."

Pant expressed his thoughts on the challenges faced by independent filmmakers, stating, "Without large multi-media marketing budgets, which need to be larger than production budgets, it is impossible for most independent films to gain distribution. Independent filmmakers are just so excited to get a chance to make work and that excitement is often extinguished by the cold reality of limited distribution. So, it is in our interest to support the development of platforms like Open Theatre that are aiming to cultivate a niche, art-house audience because only when distribution is democratized we can hope to encounter content that is distinct from the mainstream."