Kathmandu Doc Lab

Welcome to our 2026 Observers! Kathmandu Doc Lab is an intimate, small forum by design. We believe the best creative exchanges happen when the room is small enough for everyone to actually talk to each other. In the days ahead, you will witness the intense process of shaping stories, engage in honest discussions about film, and build relationships with peers from across South Asia. We are pouring a lot of energy into making this a meaningful space for everyone involved, and we are thrilled you’re joining the community.

We are excited to announce our third pre-lab masterclass with Mandakini Gahlot @mandakinigahlot Mandakini is a filmmaker based in New Delhi. She is a partner at the New Delhi production studio Elefant 4, Canal+, Al Jazeera, Arte, NHK, CNA and The Guardian. In 2023, she served as director and executive producer on Keeping the Music Alive, a feature length film about Afghanistan’s only all female orchestra. Shot in six countries, the film follows the orchestra in the immediate aftermath of the Taliban takeover in 2021. The film premiered at the Montreal International Festival of Film on Arts and was nominated for the International Documentary Association’s (IDA) annual awards in 2023, under the Best Music Documentary category. She is currently producing a feature length documentary film directed by Vikram Singh, called Camels of the Sea. The project won the Whickers Film and TV award in 2024. She is a partner at the New Delhi production studio Elefant Films.

We are delighted to welcome Prawin Adhikari to lead this Rewriting Workshop for the Kathmandu Doc Lab 2026 participants. Prawin Adhikari is a writer, editor and translator. He writes fiction and screenplays. He is an assistant editor at La.Lit magazine. He is the author of The Vanishing Act, Folk Gods, and Budhani. He has translated Amar Kanwar, Amod Bhattarai, Anbika Giri, Ariel Levy, Dr. Bhekh Bahadur Thapa, Diwas Raja KC, Frédéric Lecloux, Han Kang, Indra Bahadur Rai, Khagendra KC, Khagendra Sangroula, Kishor Sharma, Ryszard Kapuściński, Sarita Pariyar, and Suvash Darnal, among other writers. He wrote the screenplays for Kohi... Mero (2010) and Suntali (2014), the latter of which had its international premiere at Busan International Film Festival.

As we gear towards the in-person lab the 2026 cohorts will be attending a few masterclasses aimed at helping them better navigate the non-fiction industry. We are excited to welcome @loafb who will be leading the first of these sessions. - André Lô Sánchez is an Afro-Mexican/senegalese “chilampaneco” filmmaker, producer, artivist, and content creator. Founder of Cardumen Lab and @loafb , he develops documentary, hybrid, and transmedia projects focused on Afro-descendant identities, collective memory, and Anti-racist storytelling. His latest short film “Coronas Negras” has screened at more than 30 international festivals and received multiple awards. He is currently working on “Mexicanxs: The Stories of My People”, “Cuerpa-tidianos” and “Keeper of Absences”. André is part of the EFM Toolbox 2026 cohort at the Berlinale and a 2022 UN Human Rights Fellow. He has spoken and taught at many international institutions, festivals and spaces including Harvard, UC3 Madrid, UC Merced and the Quibdó African Film Festival.

The making of a film has its own story. Kathmandu Doc Lab is now a chapter in that story for these talented filmmakers. Congratulations and a warm welcome to all selected for Kathmandu Doc Lab 2026!

| Meet the Kathmandu Doc Lab Selection Committee | We’d like to thank filmmakers Kesang Tseten, Reena Mohan, Sunir Pandey and @kimff Director Ramyata Limbu for carefully reviewing the applications for the second year in a row for Kathmandu Doc Lab. We are grateful for their time, care, and dedication and excited to finally share this year’s selected projects next week. Stay tuned!

At the beginning of March Kathmandu Doc Lab director @alokloklok attended Docedge Kolkata @docresi the Asian forum for documentary and award the Kathmandu Doc Lab award to the project ‘In Between Rains’ by Sudarshan Hake @sudd_nstories This was a special edition of Docedge for many reasons and among them was the selection of Kathmandu Doc Lab alum Bunu Dhungana @bunudhungana 's project ‘Traces of Her’ which she pitched at the forum. Selections are currently underway for the 2nd edition of Kathmandu Doc Lab. More on this soon!

DEADLINE EXTENDED! Apply by March 8, 2026 . CALL FOR APPLICATIONS: KATHMANDU DOC LAB 2026 We are looking for the next generation of South Asian documentary storytellers. The Kathmandu Doc Lab is back for its second edition with a deeper, more immersive format. Join us for a 5-day residential incubator in Kathmandu, designed by South Asians, for South Asians. WHAT YOU GET: ✨ Mentorship: World-class guidance from 3 South Asian mentors. The mentors for 2026 will be revealed soon! ✨ Training: Mandatory pre-lab workshops on Writing, Budgeting, and Legal Literacy. ✨ Access: Pitch directly to global industry representatives (IDFA Bertha, The Whickers, IDA and many more). ✨ Funding: Compete for production grants to kickstart your film. WHO CAN APPLY: Participants: Documentary filmmakers from South Asia (and the diaspora) with a feature-length project in development or early production. First or second-time feature directors are strongly encouraged to apply. Observers: Emerging filmmakers, students, and journalists from Nepal who want to shadow the lab and learn (no project required). 🗓 Lab Dates: May 24 – 28, 2026 📍 Location: Kathmandu, Nepal 🔗 APPLY NOW: Link in Bio DEADLINE: March 8, 2026 Poster image credit to @gia_dhadak from her project 'Manu Mon'. #kathmandudoclab #KDL2026 #SouthAsianCinema #Documentary #Filmmaker CallForEntries kimff DocLab

Meet The Mentor - 3/3 for KDL2026 Sarvnik Kaur is an award-winning Mumbai-based documentary filmmaker and director of Against the Tide (Sundance 2023 – Special Jury Award for Verité Filmmaking) and Soz – A Ballad of Maladies (64th National Film Award, India). Her immersive, long-term observational work explores the intersection of personal lives, political realities, and ecological change. Following its Sundance premiere, Against the Tide screened and won awards internationally. Sarvnik is currently building her elemental series—from sea to land—continuing her exploration of land, identity, climate, and community through ethics-led, deeply collaborative storytelling. Warm welcome to Sarvink! KDL26 Submission Open Link in Bio

Meet The Mentor - 2/3 for KDL2026 Arun Bhattarai is a Bhutanese documentary filmmaker known for acclaimed works like, “Agent of Happiness", “The Next Guardian”, and "Mountain Man”. His latest, Agent of Happiness debuted at The Sundance Film Festival, where it was a grand jury prize nominee. His films have been awarded at major festivals and theatrically released around the world. Bhattarai specializes in intimate, culturally nuanced storytelling. His films have been supported by Sundance, Catapult and IDFA Bertha Fund. Arun is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Welcome back, Arun! KDL26 Submission Open Link in Bio

Meet The Mentor - 1/3 for KDL2026 Anam Abbas is a Pakistani/Canadian filmmaker. She is the producer and DOP of feature documentary "Showgirls of Pakistan" (IDFA 2020) and directed, "This Stained Dawn" (Dagh Dagh Ujala) (2021Sheffield Doc Fest), which follows the feminist activists who organize the "Aurat March" in Pakistan. She also produced Zarrar Kahn’s debut fiction feature, "In Flames", which had its World Premiere atDirector's Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival 2023, won the Golden Yusr for Best Picture at the Red Sea FF, and was Pakistan’s Entry for Best International Picture for the 2024 Academy Awards. Anam is also one of the founding members of the Documentary Association of Pakistan (DAP). Welcome Back, Anam! KDL26 Submission Open Link in Bio

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS: KATHMANDU DOC LAB 2026 We are looking for the next generation of South Asian documentary storytellers. The Kathmandu Doc Lab is back for its second edition with a deeper, more immersive format. Join us for a 5-day residential incubator in Kathmandu, designed by South Asians, for South Asians. WHAT YOU GET: ✨ Mentorship: World-class guidance from 3 South Asian mentors. The mentors for 2026 will be revealed soon! ✨ Training: Mandatory pre-lab workshops on Writing, Budgeting, and Legal Literacy. ✨ Access: Pitch directly to global industry representatives (IDFA Bertha, The Whickers, IDA and many more). ✨ Funding: Compete for production grants to kickstart your film. WHO CAN APPLY: Participants: Documentary filmmakers from South Asia (and the diaspora) with a feature-length project in development or early production. First or second-time feature directors are strongly encouraged to apply. Observers: Emerging filmmakers, students, and journalists from Nepal who want to shadow the lab and learn (no project required). 🗓 Lab Dates: May 24 – 28, 2026 📍 Location: Kathmandu, Nepal 🔗 APPLY NOW: Link in Bio DEADLINE: March 1, 2026 Poster image credit to @gia_dhadak from her project 'Manu Mon'. #KathmanduDocLab #KDL2026 #SouthAsianCinema #Documentary #Filmmaker CallForEntries kimff DocLab