about the film

Set in 1930’s British India, DRAUPADI UNLEASHED centers on sixteen-year-old Indira who finds herself torn between true love, her duty to follow through with an arranged marriage and the powerful allure of a mysterious guru. Through her heartbreaking journey to self-discovery, long-held secrets are brought to light and Indira discovers the strength within herself to break free.

In a story that mixes magical realism and gorgeous surroundings with the harsh realities of a patriarchal society, this beautifully told tale of a young woman at a crossroads in her life offers a rare look at aristocratic Indian society in the early part of the 20th Century—one that will resonate with audiences today.

The film, directed and written by Tony Stopperan and co-directed and based on a story by Nisha Sabharwal, stars newcomer Salena Qureshi (Netflix’s “The Society”) as Indira and features a female-centric and predominately South-Asian cast in an original narrative feature film that showcases the inner workings of a very affluent, sophisticated, western-educated Indian family and its generations of compelling, intertwined relationships.

Cas Anvar (The Operative), Dominic Rains (“Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”), Anna George (The Lovely Bones), Melanie Chandra (“Code Black”) and Azita Ghanizada (Complete Unknown) star with Pooja Batra, Saad Siddiqui, Anil Kumar, Paras Patel, Gopal Divan, and Taaha Shah Badusha co-starring. Brandon D. Hyde helmed Cinematography, Robert Schaefer (The Cotton Club) served as Editor, Ahmet Kenan Bilgic was Composer, Brandon Agan was in charge of Production Design and Casting Director Emily Schweber rounds out the top-tier, below-the-line crew.

Nisha Sabharwal, the author of the book “Draupadi Unleashed” on which the film is based, is a successful entrepreneur, an author and movie producer who has written multiple books, some of which are in the process of being made into movies championing equality through generations of strong female lineage. The central theme of Nisha’s original storytelling is portraying empowered women from traditional, affluent, prestigious and respected Indian families who, despite the odds, triumph through cultural adversity breaking the glass ceiling of their respective period in history.

about the writer and co-director

Nisha Sabharwal, the creator of DRAUPADI UNLEASHED, is a successful entrepreneur, an author and movie producer who has written multiple books, some of which are in the process of being made into movies championing equality through generations of strong female lineage. The central theme of Nisha's original storytelling is portraying empowered women from traditional, affluent, prestigious and respected Indian families who, despite the odds, triumph through cultural adversity breaking the glass ceiling of their respective period in history.