‘Boong’ resonates in Manipur for quiet reckoning with patriarchal injustice
Laxmipriya Devi’s Manipuri film Boong, co-produced by Farhan Akhtar, is being noted for more than its BAFTA win. Written and directed by Devi, the film became the first Indian film to win a BAFTA award in the children’s film category in 2026. It was celebrated in Manipur for its cinematic brilliance and the pride it brought to the state.
Beyond the story of a boy’s longing for his long-missing father, the film struck a deeper, raw nerve with Manipuri audiences. A Hindu reviewer watched it on the third day of its theatrical release in Imphal and noted that as the show ended and lights came up, there was a palpable sense of catharsis. Some women remained seated, quietly wiping tears before rising to join the rest of the audience.
The film follows Boong’s search for his father Joykumar, who ran a furniture business near the Myanmar border, while offering intimate glimpses of multi-ethnic Manipur’s fragile inter-community relationships. Through Boong and his mother Mandakini’s story, it depicts how a single woman is coerced to accept her husband’s death so her brother-in-law can claim land, and how she faces disparagement for basic interactions. The village chief’s verdict is shown as intended to torment her as a single woman.
The review points to Manipur’s complex gender equation. Women have historically been at the forefront of social, economic, and political upheavals. Women-run markets thrive across hills and valleys, and in agrarian life men and women function as equal partners. The Meira Paibi movement among Meiteis and similar movements in hill communities reinforce women’s image as social torchbearers. During colonial rule, women’s protests in 1904 and 1939 forced British policy withdrawals, commemorated as Nupi Lan or “women’s war”.
Yet Boong exposes the quieter, persistent patriarchal structures beneath that public image. The fact that the director is a woman reflects the sinew of gender empowerment in Manipur, but the film shows how that empowerment coexists with everyday patriarchal injustice. Premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival 2024 and co-produced by Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani, Boong balances a child’s innocence with Manipur’s socio-political tensions including insurgency, identity politics, and the unofficial ban on Hindi films. Director Laxmipriya Devi avoids overt speeches, letting details build the subtext.
