Kirti Kulhari’s first feature production, ‘Kinaare,’ set for Dharamshala premiere

Kirti Kulhari’s first feature as a producer, ‘Kinaare,’ is set to premiere at the 15th Dharamshala International Film Festival in Upper Dharamshala, India, during its October 29 to November 1, 2026, run, according to Variety and The Hollywood Reporter India. Kulhari also stars in the film, a family drama about a woman confronting a fractured past when a cousin returns home.

What ‘Kinaare’ is about

Brothers Akbar and Azam Quadri wrote and directed the film. Kulhari plays Amina, a single woman living in a village near Delhi, where she cares for her elderly parents and the family home. The return of a cousin after 15 years away brings their shared history back into focus; the reports describe the reunion as leading Amina toward acceptance of her present and past.

Rajeev Siddhartha, Alka Amin and Ravi Taneja are also in the cast. Kulhari is producing through Kintsukuroi Films, with Abhishek Koka and Maansi Guptey as co-producers. The crew includes cinematographer Arjun Sundaram, composer Mohan Kannan, editor Bakul Matiyani and sound designer Sanjay Chaturvedi.

Kulhari told Variety that the script resonated with her and that she wanted to make it independently, in the form the team had envisioned together. In a separate interview with The Hollywood Reporter India, she described choosing ‘Kinaare’ for her production debut as a conscious decision and said she wants to tell stories that make audiences pause and reflect. She also said she was excited for audiences to discover the film at Dharamshala.

Siddhartha told Variety that the script gave weight to the written word while leaving him room to explore what lay between the words. His comments offer a glimpse of the approach to a story built around Amina’s reunion with her cousin.

Dharamshala festival dates and online programme

The festival’s in-person programme is scheduled for October 29 to November 1 at the Tibetan Children’s Village in Upper Dharamshala. An online programme is scheduled to follow from November 2 to 9. Variety also reports that the 2026 edition will have seven fellows in a programme mentored by Dechen Roder, Umesh Kulkarni and Dominic Sangma.