Anjali Patil, who co-produced “Shadowbox,” which opened in Berlin in 2025, is producing Sailesh Rathnakumar’s debut feature “Selvi,” an ongoing project selected for the 24th Hong Kong-Asia Film Financing Forum.
The Tamil drama revolves around Selvi, a home nurse who takes on her best friend Kavitha’s shift in addition to hers after Kavitha suddenly collapses. Selvi, who moves from house to house caring for the elderly, with little time to rest, begins to grapple with guilt, love, and the weight of survival as the line between caregiving and exhaustion blurs due to long working hours.
Produced through Patil’s Anahat Films, the project is seeking funding, distributors and festival screenings in the market.
Director Rathnakumar explained how the story came about. “The story of ‘Selvi’ came to me through my cinematographer and co-writer Bhargav Sridhar. A few years ago, his mother was critically ill and spent several months in the ICU. When I visited him during that period, we often talked about the healthcare system and the lives of people involved in it.”
“During this time, Ms. Bhargav closely observed the home nurses who had become a part of their lives, women who tirelessly cared for their patients while having their own quiet struggles,” Ms. Rathnakumar said. “Many were immigrants from small towns in Tamil Nadu, living in modest hostels while working in households very different from their own. They wanted a better life, but their circumstances often made their progress uncertain.”
The director connected this material with his own experiences. “I was immediately drawn to this work because it reflected my own life. Like them, I too am an immigrant. I moved to Chennai to grow beyond the limits of my circumstances. The tension between aspiration and perseverance became Selvi’s starting point.”
Rathnakumar explained the film’s approach. “‘Selvi’ is about a quiet act of perseverance. No matter how life pulls or pushes her, she keeps moving forward. The world goes on with or without you. Her struggle is not dramatic. It exists in small gestures, everyday life, and silent moments that often go unnoticed.”
Mr. Patil explained his reasons for supporting the project. “When Sailesh shared the first material for ‘Selvi’, it immediately aligned with this vision. The film is a very honest and sensitive portrayal of the lives of home health nurses, a community that is rarely represented on screen.”
“For me, ‘Selvi’ was also an important milestone as a producer,” Patil said. “Beyond acting, I was involved in every step of the film’s production, from shaping the performance with the ensemble to building a thoughtful and sustainable production process.”
Mr. Patil outlined the goals of HAF24. “We are particularly interested in building collaborations with partners in Europe, Asia and North America who are attracted to intimate, character-driven films.”
“At the heart of Selvi is a story about migration, perseverance and the quiet resilience of everyday life. We believe these themes have the potential to resonate with audiences across cultures.”
Rathnakumar is a graduate of the Prague Film School and began his career as a sound engineer and music director under veteran Indian editor B. Lenin. He contributed to the Sri Lankan Tamil docudrama ‘Scars of Tomorrow’ in 2009.
Patil’s 15-year career spans over 45 films, including 2013’s With You, Without You. She directed and produced the documentary “Neither a Girl Nor a Woman” in 2021 and co-produced “The Moogai” which played at Sundance in 2024 and “The Shadowbox” which played in Berlin in 2025.
