NewsVoir

New Delhi [India], September 16: A Song for Eresha, the feature-film adaptation of award-winning filmmaker AK Srikanth's debut literary novel, is now launching in India on Apple TV on September 18. Written and directed by AK Srikanth, the film comes to Indian viewers following its international release.

Set in India, the story follows Eresha, who leads a prestigious arts institute that has come to define her public identity. Her relationship with a young exchange student triggers consequences that threaten her position, the institution she has built and her psychological stability.

Eminent Bharatnatyam danseuse Savitha Sastry plays the title role in a production where Indian classical dance forms an integral part of the narrative. The film has an almost all-woman cast and features over 100 classical dancers from India.

It also introduces Bengali actor Mayurakshi Sen in her feature-film debut. Mekha Rajan, known for Yuva, Jayam Kondaan and the Amazon Prime Video series Suzhal, and Arshya Lakshman, whose credits include Aayutha Ezhuthu and Suzhal 2, appear in supporting roles.

A Song for Eresha has been released in over 30 countries and has completed 150 days in the UK and over 100 days in the US. Its arrival in India took longer because the film was acquired by a US distributor and opened in overseas markets first.

Speaking on the India release, AK Srikanth said, "As an author-director, I was able to carry the inner conflicts I had written for Eresha into the visual language of the film without losing their complexity. Indian viewers will recognise the cultural setting and the place classical dance holds in her life, but I am most interested in how they judge her decisions. Watching Denzel Washington's The Tragedy of Macbeth on Apple TV stayed with me for years, so seeing my debut feature on the same platform is an extraordinary personal moment. India is home for me and for this story, making this the release I have awaited most."

Influenced by the classical filmmaking styles of directors such as Satyajit Ray and Balu Mahendra, the film uses measured storytelling, carefully composed frames and Eresha's psychological progression to examine memory, identity, desire and emotional deterioration.

The soundtrack has been designed by Grammy-nominated musician Abhay Nayampally, a student of Mandolin U Srinivas. Nayampally recently collaborated with Tom Schuman of Spyro Gyra on the album I Am Schuman.

Srikanth's previous directorial work includes Slow Rivers, which won him the Best Director Award at the Florence Film Awards in 2023, and Colors: White, winner of the Best Director award at the New York International Film Awards in 2021. He has also directed 12 short films, several of which draw from Indian art, culture and philosophical thought.

The novel A Song for Eresha is available internationally in paperback, hardcover, ebook and audiobook formats. The book and its screen adaptation allow readers and viewers to encounter Srikanth's story through literary and cinematic forms.

A Song for Eresha is now available in India on Apple TV.

Amazon book link: amzn.to/4vRWbA8

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