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A landmark cinematic collaboration between India and Kyrgyzstan, bringing together two cultures through a deeply human story.
Unsaid, an Indo-Kyrgyz feature film shot entirely in Kyrgyzstan, marks a significant milestone in cinematic collaboration between India and Kyrgyzstan. The film has been selected for WAVES Film Bazaar Recommends (WFBR) 2026 at the Film Bazaar in Goa, offering an opportunity to connect with industry professionals, distributors, sales agents and potential partners.
Produced by Suresh Keshav Menon under Motion Film Picture and directed by debutant Malayali filmmaker Benny Aynick, Unsaid brings together artists and technical professionals from both countries. Supported by the governments of India and Kyrgyzstan, it aims to strengthen cultural exchange and encourage cooperation between their film industries.
Unsaid represents an important step towards sustained relations between the filmmaking communities of the two nations. Beyond one production, it demonstrates the potential of cross-border partnerships, shared expertise, talent exchange and future co-productions.
A Cross-Cultural Cinematic Journey
Made in Hindi, English and Kyrgyz, Unsaid brings together Indian and Kyrgyz cinematic sensibilities through a story rooted in universal human experiences. The film features Nikhat Khan, Suresh Keshav Menon and Salamat Aliev. Nikhat Khan, sister of Bollywood actor Aamir Khan, makes her debut in a leading role with the project.
Filming entirely in Kyrgyzstan was central to the creative vision. The country is more than a backdrop: its landscapes, people and cultural atmosphere are integral to the film’s visual identity and storytelling.
Indian and Kyrgyz professionals worked together throughout production, combining creative perspectives, technical expertise and local knowledge.
Principal photography took place during the final days of winter in 2026, demonstrating how a shared artistic purpose can unite professionals across borders.
The film’s three languages are part of its identity. Hindi and English connect the Indian dimension of the story, while Kyrgyz gives the local characters and setting an authentic voice. This multilingual approach reflects a production shaped by encounters between people from different backgrounds. It allows the film to speak to audiences who may recognise its emotions, even when the words and cultural contexts differ.
The collaboration required trust as well as artistic ambition. Working in another country means listening to local expertise, adapting to unfamiliar conditions and building understanding across departments. The Indian and Kyrgyz teams shared that responsibility, making the production an example of cooperation in action. The filmmakers hope the relationships formed during the shoot will continue beyond this film and encourage other producers to consider Kyrgyzstan as a creative and production partner.
Government Support and Bilateral Cooperation
The production received assistance from the Indian Embassy in Kyrgyzstan, under Indian Ambassador Shri Birender Singh Yadav and his team, helping facilitate the shoot and institutional cooperation.
Line production in Kyrgyzstan was coordinated by Azamat Zhamankulov, former Kyrgyz Minister of Culture, Information, Sports and Youth Policy, with support from the local film fraternity.
The project shows how diplomatic engagement and professional cooperation can create opportunities for future partnerships between Indian and Central Asian film industries, including production services, technical collaboration and distribution.
For Motion Film Picture, the production has created relationships and practical experience that may support further collaboration between filmmakers in India and Kyrgyzstan.
A Film About Men’s Mental Health and Emotional Vulnerability
At its heart, Unsaid explores men’s mental health, emotional vulnerability, loneliness, addiction, grief and recovery through human connection. It considers struggles many men find difficult to express, particularly where emotional openness is misunderstood or discouraged.
Through its characters, the story examines isolation, empathy and acceptance, looking beyond conventional portrayals of masculinity to reveal emotional lives often hidden beneath the surface.
The title reflects the pain and feelings people carry but cannot communicate: unspoken grief, unresolved emotions and the need to be understood.
Men’s emotional well-being remains underrepresented in mainstream cinema. Through sensitive, character-driven storytelling, Unsaid hopes to reach audiences across cultures, since loneliness, loss, addiction and the search for connection cross borders.
WAVES Film Bazaar Recommends 2026
Selection for WAVES Film Bazaar Recommends (WFBR) 2026 in Goa marks an important stage. The platform offers visibility among industry professionals and opportunities to engage with potential partners in distribution, sales and exhibition.
For this independent international production, WFBR offers a valuable setting to introduce Unsaid to a wider professional audience. The selection recognises its cross-border production and socially relevant subject.
The filmmakers see the selection as a stepping stone towards the next phase, offering opportunities to explore industry relationships and distribution possibilities as they prepare the festival strategy.
The WFBR selection comes at a significant moment for independent cinema. For Unsaid, the Film Bazaar offers a space to present the project, discuss its international origins and explore routes towards festivals, distribution and exhibition. The team will keep the film’s subject and creative identity central to these conversations.
Looking Beyond Borders
With principal photography completed, Unsaid is progressing through post-production and preparing for its international festival journey. The project aims to encourage sustained creative partnerships between the two industries.
For producer Suresh Keshav Menon and Motion Film Picture, the film is an artistic undertaking and an effort to build international relationships. Its production demonstrates what creative vision, local knowledge and cooperation can achieve.
Its WFBR 2026 selection provides an encouraging platform to take the film to a wider audience.
More than a film, Unsaid represents what cinema can achieve when two nations come together through a shared creative vision. It is a story about emotions left unspoken, connections that can help people heal, and bridges built between cultures through the universal language of cinema.
UNSAID — An Indo-Kyrgyz cinematic collaboration. Two nations. Two cultures. One human story.