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“Certainly what you’d call A RIDE”
“Heart-POUNDING”
Deadline
Screen Daily
Two brothers, with a tenuous relationship and a thin veneer of familial love, are challenged when they chance upon a woman in the early morning hours at a remote railway station in rural India.
Broken and with little to her name, she is beside herself with panic when she wakes from her slumber to discover her infant daughter missing.
A series of unfortunate events embroil the two brothers: one on a crusade to right the world’s wrongs, and the other who believes in reaping the pleasures of his privilege. They become involved in the woman's desperate endeavor to be reunited with her young child.
This perilous journey through the unforgiving hinterlands thrusts the young men out of their sheltered existence, compelling them to confront the harshness of reality. Forced to navigate the dark underbelly of society, testing their resilience, trust, and ultimately, their humanity, this chance encounter changes the lives of these young people forever.
“A NAIL BITING Thriller”
Variety
SYNOPSIS
FROM THE PRESS
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PRODUCER'S Note
Since the time I decide to produce films, I always had the firm conviction that in order for Indian cinema to thrive and survive the onslaught of Bollywood and mainstream industries, we need to carve hyper local stories with universal themes catering to a global audiences.
Through “Stolen” we have created a real-time edge-of-the-seat action thriller which keeps the audience hooked while exploring themes and subtexts which are globally appealing. The film’s world premiere at at Venice International Film festival in 2023 vindicates my stand that if made with conviction, heart and sincerity, an edge of the seat mystery action thriller which engages a wide global audience can find itself celebrated at the Mecca of art house cinema.
GAURAV DHINGRA
Gaurav Dhingra is a maverick international producer from India, renowned for independently producing acclaimed films such as “Angry Indian Goddesses,” which sold in 77 countries and won the People’s Choice Award at the Toronto International Film Festival 2015, “Faith Connections,” set in the Kumbh Mela, the largest gathering on earth, which premiered at TIFF in 2013, “Peddlers,” a Golden Camera nominee at Cannes in 2011. Gaurav has mounted the first India-New Zealand co-production “Beyond The Known World” paving ways for transcontinental creative collaboration.
His production company, Jungle Book Studio, founded in 2013 with filmmaker Pan Nalin, premiered its latest feature, “STOLEN,” at the Venice International Film Festival in 2023, gaining international acclaim. Gaurav has line produced the biggest international TV shows shot in India like “The Amazing Race,” “Ice Road Truckers,” and “Survivor,” as well as successful big commercial films such as “Rang De Basanti,” “Maqbool,” and “Mangal Pandey.” Under the “Jungle Book Studio” rebranding, he helmed marquee international blockbuster projects like “Rennervations” for Disney+ and editions of “The Amazing Race” in Hyderabad and Jaipur.
With a profound understanding of global audience preferences, Gaurav continues to innovate through his brand of global filmmaking, bridging Indian stories with global aesthetics and parallely introducing international cinema to India and Southeast Asia.
KARAN TEJPAL
Karan Tejpal is a director and writer, with two decades of experience working in the Indian film industry. Tejpal started as an assistant director in large scale Bollywood films, and moved through a range of projects including advertising and television, until he found his niche in independent cinema. His work explores inequalities and broken social systems that eventually permeate and dislocate communities, and even society at large. Over the last few years he has focused on writing and directing short films, documentaries, series and feature films. Tejpal’s screenplays have been selected for Sundance and NFDC film labs.
From larger than life Bollywood productions, to the gruelling strife of independent cinema, my journey in the Indian film industry has seen both glamour and grit. What continuously inspires me is the opportunity to unravel the tales of our complex and contradictory world, where brutality coexists with moments of profound humanity.
The story of Stolen grew out of one such reality. Imagine this: In India, every ten minutes, a child disappears without a trace. The fate of these children is presumably to be trafficked, for their bodies to be sold and used without their consent. It is the most impoverished and vulnerable strata of society who tend to be the primary targets of such abuse. A lack of state accountability and limited scope of recourse leads to a growing sense of injustice and anger. The result is for communities to take matters into their own hands.
Stolen brings us the interwoven stories of multiple characters and groups, who are each suffering from their own traumas and hardships. While the brothers struggle to prove their innocence, it is Jhumpa, the troubled young mother, whose harsh realities ground this story.
Stolen is my earnest attempt to bring to light the unseen realities that shape our society and to provoke introspection on the issues that matter most. I hope that this cinematic journey will not only entertain but also encourage meaningful conversations about the complexities of our world, ultimately paving the way for a better, more empathetic future.
DIRECTOR'S Note
Jungle Book Studio is an Indian production powerhouse crafting stories on screens that captivate global audiences.
We produce Independent feature films and documentaries, and provide production services for international and domestic content that travels across the world.
Jungle Book’s homegrown stories have global impact.From gripping dramas and heartwarming features to adrenaline-fueled action thrillers we bring stories to life with precision and creativity.