Pondicherry is a 2022 Indian Marathi-language relationship drama film directed by Sachin Kundalkar and produced by Planet Marathi and Creative Vibe Productions shot entirely on smartphone. The film stars Sai Tamhankar, Vaibhav Tatwawadi and Amruta Khanvilkar are in lead roles. Pondicherry was scheduled to be theatrically release on 25 February 2022. Planet Marathi OTT is the official streaming partner of this film.
Plot Nikita and her eight-year-old son, Ishan, stay in an old family villa in Pondicherry that Nikita lets out as a homestay for travelers. Nikita is from Maharashtra and her Tamil husband Vishnu who worked in the Merchant Navy has been missing in a maritime accident. A broker specializing in getting people to sell old family homes – through deception or force – to hospitality companies arrives at Nikita's homestay, giving all their lives an unexpected twist.
Cast Sai Tamhankar as Nikita Vaibhav Tatwawadi as Rohan Amruta Khanvilkar as Manasi Bhupendra Jadawat as Antonio Tanmay Kulkarni as Ishan Neena Kulkarni as Aai Mahesh Manjrekar Gaurav Ghatnekar
Production In January 2019, Manjrekar joined the cast. The film was entirely shot on iPhone with only 15 crew members.
Soundtrack The music for the movie was composed by Debarpito Saha, with songs featuring Abhay Jodhpurkar and Mohan Kanan. The lyrics were written by Tejas Modak and Sunil Suptankar.
Reception Mihir Bhange from The Times of India wrote "Pondicherry may not strike the perfect chords with regular viewers. But for those who follow global cinema, this film is a treat to watch". Nandini Ramnath from Scroll.in wrote "Sai Tamhankar, among the few actors who can effortlessly suggest enigma and reserve, is the most compelling member of the cast. Vaibhav Tatwawadi and Amruta Khanvilkar are saddled with uneven and implausible character graphs. Neena Kulkarni is a hoot as the scandal-mongering mother, but there’s nothing in her performance that we haven’t seen before".
Accolades AwardYearCategoryRecipient(s)Result Fakt Marathi Cine Sanman2022Best Actress in a Lead RoleSai TamhankarFilmfare Awards Marathi2023Best Film Critics'PondicherryBest ActressSai TamhankarBest Actress Critics'Best Supporting ActressAmruta KhanvilkarBest StoryTejas Modak, Sunil SukthankarBest Production DesignDivya GoswamiBest CinematographerMilind JogBest Background ScoreDebarpito SahaBest Sound DesignAnita KushwahaBest Costume DesignAmit DivekarPravah Picture Puraskar2022Best FilmPondicherryBest DirectorSachin Kundalkar Best Actress Sai TamhankarBest ActorVaibhav TatwawadiBest Supporting ActressAmruta KhanvilkarBest Child ActorTanmay KulkarniBest SingerMohan KannanBest Background MusicDebarpito SahaBest DialogueTejas Modak, Sunil SukthankarBest StoryBest ScreenplayBest Sound SchemeAnita KushwahaBest CostumeAmit DivekarBest CinematographyMilind JogBest EditorAbhijit DeshpandePlanet Marathi Film and OTT Awards2023Best Art Direction Divya GoswamiMaharashtra State Film Awards2025Best Film IIPondicherryBest Social FilmBest Director IISachin KundalkarBest Social Film DirectorBest ScreenplayTejas Modak, Sunil SukthankarBest ActorVaibhav TatwawadiBest ActressSai Tamhankar
See also List of films shot on mobile phones
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