TIFF’s 2026 India slate spans seven films, but no mainstream Hindi release

TIFF’s 51st edition, which runs from September 10 to 20, includes films ranging from a Malayalam vampire western and a Tamil action drama to a film set in Nagaland and a Hindi-language drama about Phoolan Devi.

Robyn Citizen, TIFF’s director of programming and platform lead, said the Indian submissions stood out for their range of genres and narrative styles.

"The submissions this year from India were just wildly different in narrative tone and genre," Citizen told the Hindustan Times, adding that the final selection reflected the submissions the festival received.

The absence of a mainstream Hindi film was attributed to scheduling rather than a lack of interest in the language. Citizen said the release dates and plans for some larger films did not align with the festival’s schedule, according to the Hindustan Times.

Among the selections is "Phoolan," a Hindi-language film directed by Richie Mehta that will screen in TIFF’s Special Presentations section. The film follows a 48-hour period in the life of Phoolan Devi, the Indian bandit-turned-politician, and stars newcomer Sneha Kumari in the title role.

Samjad’s Malayalam-language "Half"  will screen in the Midnight Madness section. The film follows twin half-blood vampires battling desert highway hijackers and is set in Rajasthan. Screen International described it as an Indian western combining horror and martial arts.

Karthik Subbaraj’s Tamil film "Dorothy" will be part of the Centrepiece program. Theja Rio’s "Angh," set in Nagaland in the 1960s and filmed in the Konyak language, has been selected for TIFF’s competitive Platform section.

The lineup also includes a digital restoration of John Abraham’s 1986 Malayalam film "Report to Mother" (Amma Ariyan) and the short films "Termite," by Shaunak Sen, and "Aman," by Rahul Roye.

"Aman," a short about trans pregnancy, is also set for a world premiere at TIFF, with filmmakers Nikkhil Advani and Dominique Welinski attached as executive producers, Variety reported.

The seven-film selection gives Indian regional cinema a substantial presence at TIFF even without a major mainstream Hindi theatrical title. The festival is expected to feature nearly 300 titles across its programs this year.