BAFTA announces its Breakthrough 2024 participants across India, UK, and USA

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), supported by Netflix, has today unveiled nine emerging talents from the film, television and games industries selected for its BAFTA Breakthrough India 2024 cohort. BAFTA is introducing its UK, USA and India participants simultaneously, with 43 talented individuals selected globally.

The nine names for BAFTA Breakthrough India were selected by a distinguished jury of leading experts in the creative industry, including Jury Chair and BAFTA Breakthrough Ambassador Guneet Monga Kapoor (Producer, Founder & CEO, Sikhya Entertainment), Manvendra Shukul (CEO, Lakshya Digital), Monika Shergill (Vice President, Content - Netflix India), Palomi Ghosh (Actor and former Breakthrough India), Rajiv Menon (Filmmaker), Ratna Pathak Shah (Actor, Theatre Director), Sangeeta Datta (Filmmaker), Shonali Bose (Filmmaker) and Sushmit Ghosh (Filmmaker).

The list of BAFTA Breakthrough India participants for 2024 is:

● Abhinav Chokhavatia | Game Producer - Down and Out

● Christo Tomy | Director - Curry and Cyanide: The Jolly Joseph Case

● Deepa Bhatia |Writer/ Director/ Producer - First Act

● Dhiman Karmakar | Sound Designer/ Production Sound Mixer

- Amar Singh Chamkila

● Jaydeep Sarkar | Showrunner/ Series Director/ Executive Producer- Rainbow Rishta

● Monisha Thyagarajan |Series Producer - The Hunt For Veerappan

● Neeraj Kumar | Producer/ Lead Developer - Artifice: War Tactics

● Sindhu Sreenivasa Murthy | Writer/ Director/ Performer - Aachar & Co

● Varun Grover |Writer/ Director - All India Rank

Over the last three years, BAFTA Breakthrough, supported by Netflix, has discovered and nurtured upcoming professionals from the film, games and television industries across India. It has equipped them with the resources they need to hone their skills and thrive in their chosen line of creative work in the screen industries. As part of this programme, the Breakthroughs were provided with invaluable support in networking and learning from a global creative community, including experts such as Richie Mehta, Siddharth Roy Kapur, Phoebe Waller Bridge, Paul Laverty, Graham Broadbent, amongst others.

Jane Millichip, Chief Executive Officer, BAFTA, said: “BAFTA Breakthrough, now in its 11th year, spotlights a host of emerging and talented ‘must-watch’ creative practitioners working across film, games and television. This year we have an amazing roster of casting directors, producers, writers, performers, lead artists, cinematographers, lead developers, and more. We urge the industry to take note. A huge thank you to Netflix, whose support makes BAFTA Breakthrough possible.”

Guneet Monga Kapoor, BAFTA Breakthrough India Ambassador and Jury Chair, said: “A massive congratulations to this year’s nine India Breakthroughs, who demonstrate once again that there is no shortage of creative talent in India. It was extremely difficult to narrow down the pool of talented candidates. I can’t wait to see how this year’s cohort harnesses BAFTA Breakthrough’s opportunities to hone their craft!”

Monika Shergill, Vice President of Content, Netflix India, said: “This marks our fourth consecutive year supporting BAFTA in discovering and nurturing the next wave of creative talent, and the experience has been incredibly fulfilling. India is brimming with storytellers and this collaboration allows us to support emerging voices as they make their mark across industries in the creative landscape. Congratulations to this year’s nine Breakthroughs—we’re excited to see where this journey takes them.”

Throughout the year-long programme, the Breakthroughs will benefit from professional development while connecting with the academy’s global network of over 12,000 members. They will also get the opportunity to share their expertise with peers from around the world, engaging in a creative and cultural exchange across the film, games and television circuits. In addition to this, they will receive free access to BAFTA events and screenings for 12 months and full voting BAFTA membership in the academy’s world-leading film, games and television awards. Moreover, as BAFTA Breakthrough artists, they will be promoted on a global stage, gaining access to opportunities beyond Indian shores.

BAFTA’s Breakthrough today counts 290 people amongst its alumni, including Callum Turner, Florence Pugh, Gemma Langford, Letitia Wright, Tom Holland, and Josh O’Connor since its inception in 2013. Having launched in India in 2020, the programme has since nurtured the careers of creative talents like Alokananda Dasgupta, Arun Karthick, Jay Pinak Oza, Karthikeya Murthy, Shruti Ghosh, Sumukhi Suresh, and Taniya Maniktala, amongst others. Many of BAFTA’s previous Breakthroughs have flourished in their careers, with several even becoming BAFTA winners and nominees.