For most independent filmmakers, the dream is not merely making a film, but ensuring it reaches an audience. Imagine our surprise when Nukkad Naatak appeared on Netflix last Friday morning. The Hindi film, which hit theatres on February 27, follows two college friends, Molshri and Shivang, as they embark on a journey of redemption.

What drove this indie success story? Directed by Tanmaya Shekhar and produced by Medha Khanna, Nukkad Naatak lacks the typical Bollywood blueprint — stars, studio machinery, and initial access to major OTT platforms. What it did have was a deeply relatable story.

Tanmaya Shekhar and Medha Khanna

“For me, it started with the feedback screenings,” says Khanna. “Typically, people give technical feedback like change the music or this cut is not working. Rarely do people talk about their personal association to the film.” In this case, viewers discussed their own college friendships and NGO experiences. Khanna considers this a “good metric” of how well an audience connects with a story.

Film festivals across Kolkata, Jaipur, London, Germany, and Australia deepened the team’s conviction. While they initially targeted young Indian viewers, the true turning point occurred in Germany.

“When people in Germany came out after the screenings, a lot of them were crying,” says Shekhar. “That was [when we knew] that it’s not just the Indian audience, even outside of India people were enjoying watching it.”

However, the path to Netflix was difficult. “At that point, Netflix, Prime Video, these OTTs were not accessible. We were confident that’s what we wanted, but we just didn’t have the right access,” the director adds. The team launched an unconventional ‘grassroots caravan’ campaign, taking the film through cities across North India. This journey eventually defined the film’s identity and business strategy. “We weren’t pitching to Netflix merely as a film anymore,” Khanna explains. “We had to prove that there is this existing audience that we already have, and if you give us the platform, that audience is only going to grow further.”

So, what’s the next challenge? “Now what? How can we make sure that more people are actually going and watching the film?” Khanna asks. The spotlight now shifts to the audience. Will you watch it?

Rs 2.5 CR
The budget of ‘Nukkad Naatak’

What’s ‘Nukkad Naatak’ about?

The film follows two college friends, Molshri and Shivang, who are expelled after being caught stealing; and are given one last chance to redeem themselves by enrolling five children from a nearby slum into school. What begins as punishment turns into a journey of self-discovery, forcing them to confront class divide, privilege, and the true meaning of responsibility

Did you know?

One and a half years ago, Medha Khanna had made a vision board. On it was written that Netflix homepage will have ‘Nukkad Naatak’”s thumbnail. “Today, that is happening,” recalls Tanmaya Shekhar