Anuparna Roy wins Best Director award at Venice Film festival for 'Songs of Forgotten Trees'

Highlights:

• Anuparna Roy becomes first Indian filmmaker to win Best Director in Venice’s Orizzonti section.
  
• Her debut film Songs of Forgotten Trees received international acclaim.
  
• Jim Jarmusch’s Father Mother Sister Brother wins the Golden Lion for Best Film.
  
• Tunisian film The Voice of Hind Rajab takes the Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize after a 22-minute standing ovation.
  

Historic win for Indian cinema

The 82nd Venice Film Festival concluded on Saturday with a landmark victory for Indian cinema. Filmmaker Anuparna Roy made history as the first Indian director to win Best Director in the Orizzonti section, awarded for her debut feature Songs of Forgotten Trees. The film, starring Naaz Shaikh and Sumi Baghel, explores the intersecting lives of two women in Mumbai and was praised for its nuanced storytelling and Roy’s assured directorial vision.

Golden Lion for Best Film

The festival’s top honour, the Golden Lion for Best Film, was awarded to Jim Jarmusch’s American indie Father Mother Sister Brother. The win was a surprise outcome, with Kaouther Ben Hania’s The Voice of Hind Rajab—a searing account of the Gaza crisis—emerging as the favourite following a prolonged standing ovation. Instead, the Tunisian feature received the Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize.

Roy’s message to women in cinema

Accepting the award, presented by Indian filmmaker Anurag Kashyap, Roy dedicated her win to women worldwide. “This film is a tribute to every woman who’s ever been silenced, overlooked, or underestimated,” she said. “May this win inspire more voices, more stories, and more power for women in cinema and beyond.”

Other major awards – main section

• Golden Lion for Best Film: Father Mother Sister Brother by Jim Jarmusch (United States)
  
• Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize: The Voice of Hind Rajab by Kaouther Ben Hania (Tunisia)
  
• Silver Lion for Best Director: Benny Safdie for The Smashing Machine (United States)
  
• Volpi Cup for Best Actress: Xin Zhilei for The Sun Rises on Us All (China)
  
• Volpi Cup for Best Actor: Toni Servillo for La Grazia (Italy)
  
• Best Screenplay: À pied d’œuvre (At Work) by Valérie Donzelli (France)
  
• Special Jury Prize: Sotto le Nuvole (Below the Clouds) by Gianfranco Rosi (Italy)
  
• Marcello Mastroianni Award: Luna Wedler in Silent Friend by Ildikó Enyedi (Switzerland)
  

Orizzonti section highlights

• Best Film: En El Camino by David Pablos (Mexico)
  
• Best Director: Anuparna Roy for Songs of Forgotten Trees (India)
  
• Special Jury Prize: Lost Land by Akio Fujimoto (Japan)
  
• Best Actor: Giacomo Covi for A Year of School (Italy)
  
• Best Actress: Benedetta Porcaroli for The Kidnapping of Arabella (Italy)
  
• Best Screenplay: Ana Cristina Barragán for Hiedra (Ecuador)
  
• Best Short Film: Without Kelly by Lovisa Siren (Sweden)
  

A landmark festival

This year’s festival celebrated both established and emerging voices in cinema. Roy’s recognition marks a turning point for Indian filmmakers on the global stage, signalling a growing openness to diverse stories and perspectives within world cinema.