Director Laxmipriya Devi Calls BAFTA Win a ‘Mountain We Never Knew We Could Climb’

The Manipuri film 'Boong' brought India some great news at the BAFTA Awards 2026. 'Boong' won the award in the Best Children and Family Film category, making this film 'Boong', the first Indian film to win an award at the BAFTAs. Producer Farhan Akhtar is overjoyed with this win. He also attended the BAFTA Awards to celebrate the film's victory. During the celebration, producer Farhan Akhtar spoke about the inspiration behind starting this project. He also spoke about his long association with director Laxmipriya Devi.

Farhan Akhtar shared that he has known Laxmipriya for almost two decades. The producer added, "Laxmipriya Devi and I have known each other for almost 20 years. This film is set in a region of India from which we rarely see films. It was a pleasure to support it, and it's a very heartwarming story. So this project felt natural."

The film's director, Laxmipriya Devi, said of the victory, "The journey to this point felt like the last few steps to reaching the peak of a mountain we never knew we could climb."

I want to use this opportunity to say that we pray for peace to return to Manipur. We pray that all the displaced children, including the child actors in the film, can rediscover their joy, their innocence, and their dreams."

We pray that no struggle is powerful enough to destroy the one superpower we all possess: forgiveness. So thank you to BAFTA for not only giving us this award but also for giving us this platform to express our hope.

Boong was the only Indian film nominated at the BAFTAs and has now become the first Indian film to win an award in this category. "Boong" is directed by Laxmipriya Devi and produced by Farhan Akhtar, Vikesh Bhutani, Alan McAlex, Ritesh Sidhwani, and Shujaat Saudagar. The filmmakers, including Farhan Akhtar, Ritesh Sidhwani, Laxmipriya Devi, and Alan McAlex, were present to receive the award at the ceremony held at the Royal Festival Hall in London.