Kakthet co-production award and new film finance research

What did Variety report about Kakthet?

Variety reports that Kakthet won the inaugural INR40 lakh, or $42,000, feature co-production fund run by Humans of Cinema and Safarnaama Pictures. The trade publication says the organizers selected the project from nearly 400 entries.

According to Variety, the film follows a government school and its surrounding community whose future depends on a reluctant student. Variety names Ritu Sarin and Rajesh Thanickan as producers, alongside French co-producer La Belle Affaire Productions.

Variety reports that Vishal Bhardwaj and Shaunak Sen serve as mentors, with Sen also serving as executive producer of the winning project. The publication says the team has principal cast, crew and shooting locations in place while it seeks additional financing and co-production relationships across Asia, Australia and Europe.

What did the separate financing research find?

In his October 28 analysis, Stephen Follows says he examined 757 private film raises from 2008 to mid-2026. Follows reports that 16% reached their fundraising targets and that the typical raise reached 10% of its target.

Follows also describes research covering 160 real loans across 137 films made since 2018. He distinguishes lending against tax credits, signed presales and estimates for unsold territories, and explains why the repayment position differs from equity participation.

Do the reports describe the same financing arrangement?

No. Variety's report concerns a specific co-production award and the development of Kakthet. Follows describes a separate research sample covering independent film finance; he does not identify Kakthet as a subject of that analysis. Neither report states that the award closes the film's entire financing package.

Sources

• Variety: Kakthet co-production fund award
• Stephen Follows: The film finance numbers nobody shows you