Himachal filmmaker appointed to fest panel preview committee

Renowned filmmaker, writer, academic and social reformer Dev Kanya Thakur has been appointed to the Preview Committee of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI)-2025 for the second consecutive time by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. She has been entrusted with evaluating web series, a category growing rapidly in artistic relevance. In 2024, she served on the Preview Committee assessing films by debut directors.

A Doctorate in Journalism and Mass Communication, Thakur is also trained in Film Studies from the prestigious Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune. She has authored six books in fiction, poetry, research and social commentary. Her stories ‘Hesan’ and ‘Mohra’, which explored Devadasi traditions and caste discrimination in Himachal have won major literary awards, including honours from Prasar Bharati and the Himachal Pradesh Sahitya Akademi.

As an independent filmmaker, Thakur has directed more than 10 documentaries, a short film and two feature films. Her works have travelled to film festivals across India and abroad — Kerala, Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, Nepal, Brazil and the United States.

Her documentary ‘Behind the Bars’ won the first prize at the National Human Rights Commission Awards (2018) for its powerful portrayal of prison reforms in Himachal Pradesh.