BAFTA Breakthrough Fellow Sindhu Sreenivasa Murthy will direct Teacher’s Pet, a coming-of-age comedy set in an Indian Catholic boarding school for girls.
The project will be announced at WAVES Film Bazaar, a market component of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI).
‘Jubilee’ (Prime Video) and ‘Black Warrant’ (Netflix) filmmaker Vikramaditya Motwane has joined his Andolan Films as an executive producer. Based on Shuchi Dwivedi’s script, the film is produced by Aishwarya Sonar’s Lambe Log Productions and Dwivedi’s Small Town Gurl Productions.
“Teacher’s Pet” follows Linky, an overachiever determined to become the head girl at her school, until her ambition is thwarted when she finds herself at odds with her former best friend. What begins as a rivalry spirals into a chaotic and heartwarming journey through adolescent identity, friendship, and the universal awkwardness that comes with growing up.
This project is driven by a creative team working at the intersection of India and the United States. Having spent their teenage years exploring themselves in coming-of-age stories centered around white protagonists, filmmakers are determined to expand the world of their stories.
“We are committed to telling the stories of India to the world. ‘Pet’ does just that as it explores the chaotic life of a teenager. We grew up finding ourselves in a coming-of-age story of a white girl. With this, we are working to be a part of that change, not only for representation but also to showcase the vibrant world of Indian comedy, which is rare on global screens,” says Aishwarya Sonar, whose recent works include the short film ‘Yakshi’ (starring Babil). Khan and Anna Ben) and ‘Hema’ (starring Rajshri Deshpande) were produced under her production company Lambe Log Productions.
Funding is being raised through private equity, international co-production partners and non-recoverable grants. The team has already secured a $200,000 commitment and is in active discussions with new investors and production companies.
The script was developed during Dwivedi’s time at AFI and has since been shortlisted in Mubi’s Cannes W Screenplay Program, semi-finalist in the Emerging Writers Comedy Competition, and won the 2024 IFFLA Pitch Competition. The project also entered Tasveer’s Producer Lab and was featured in markets such as IFFLA, CineV and is now part of WAVES Film’s co-production market. Bazaar 2025.
Casting is currently underway and production is scheduled to begin in December 2026 in Madhya Pradesh, India. Murthy has previously directed the Kannada feature film ‘Aachar & Co’. and the documentary series ‘Jeevalahari’ (Doordarshan). Her latest Kannada feature film ’13 Days’ is currently in post-production.
“We are in a position to deliver. Our director has pitched her debut film to Amazon Studios and our EP is behind many successful titles in India. We are currently looking for a global partner to help us bring this story to theaters around the world,” Sonar added.
