Cinema VinesActor and director Sayani Gupta is taking her first feature, the short film Aasmani, on a global tour of film festivals. The 10‑minute piece has already been accepted into ten festivals spanning four countries and is slated to appear over the next two months in the United States, Canada, Japan and India.
Key screenings include the Washington, D.C. South Asian Film Festival, the Tokyo International Short Film Festival, the India International Film Festival of Boston, the Chicago South Asian Film Festival and the Atlanta International Film Festival. In India, Aasmani has earned spots in the Short Film Competition at the International Documentary and Short Film Festival of Kerala (IDSFFK) and the India competition at the Bengaluru International Short Film Festival. Four additional festival selections are expected to be announced soon.
Already, the film has accumulated a string of accolades. It captured the REMI Special Jury Award for Best Children/Family Film at the 59th WorldFest‑Houston and the Best Short Film Audience Choice Award at the Inde Meme Film Festival in Austin, U.S. The Cannes Film Festival of the World also honored it with a Best Children/Family Film award, among other recognitions.
Plot-wise, Aasmani follows the bond between a spirited grandmother and her granddaughter, with a powder‑blue car acting as a pivotal element of their journey. Through this relationship, the story delves into themes of love, loss and friendship.
Gupta’s transition from acting to directing is already proving fruitful, as the film’s international circuit and growing list of awards underscore her talent behind the camera.
