Oct 29, 2026 10:00pm IST
‘Birds On Ice’ Director Sahil H Shah On The Ladakhi Film’s Festival Run, Ice Hockey And Oscar Aspirations (EXCLUSIVE)
After a world premiere (in ‘Vision Asia,’ a non-competition space) at Busan International Film Festival and packed screenings and terrific word-of-mouth over three days, Sahil H Shah’s Ladakhi-language film ‘Birds On Ice,” then got screened at the Dharamshala International Film Festival on Oct. 29, 2026.
An endearing tale about Taashi (Skitdon Samzang), a young Ladakhi girl daring to dream, to “fly on ice,” to aspire beyond her means, to excel in ice hockey, a sport that has a frenzied following in the region, it addresses the human element and how children and a community rally around each other in the best and worst of times.
The producer-director spoke to Variety India about the way ahead on the festival circuit, where the film took birth, casting, and the process of putting the emotion-driven film about the love of ice hockey in the region together. And yes, even, Oscar aspirations, depending on the film’s festival run.
Excerpts..
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Which other festivals will ‘Birds On Ice’ be playing at?
We played at the Dharamshala International Film Festival today. We've also applied to and also gotten inquiries from Palm Springs in Los Angeles. We're trying for Berlin. So yeah, we are sort of putting our film out there as much as we can, to get as much exposure, where we can get a good audience to watch our film and interact with us.
Where and when did the germ of the idea for 'Birds On Ice' come from?
In 2016, during an impromptu trip to Ladakh. It was my first trip to the place. I undertook a trek, a walk on the ice for six days. During one such trek, one of the locals out there introduced me to the game of ice hockey. The sport is played there on frozen ponds. Every evening, the locals would pour buckets and buckets on the frozen pond and a flat layer would form overnight because of the cold. If in the morning, there was snowfall, they would scrape that snowfall and it would turn into a proper ice rink. There's a big ice hockey culture there and that was something I found visually mesmerizing.
I was blown away by the fact that in a country like ours, which is known for cricket and football, that people who play this sport, don’t just play for the fun of it. The truth is, they also play nationals, at the highest levels. They represent our country in different tournaments overseas. There’s this entire frenzy around the game there. At the time, I did not think that I would probably direct someday. But that world did leave a mark on me.
I kept going back again and again and I kept documenting the players, the people associated with the game. I guess that's where it all started, when I thought I was in a good space to direct a film. I took this on myself, because I didn't think any studio would have backed me, because it's such a remote region. I wanted to do absolute justice to the people there and I wanted to cast the locals. All things considered, it would not have been a very commercially viable decision. I knew those realities and hence, I sort of took this on by myself. With the help of my family and a few crew members that I work with.
Did you ever consider a trained actor for Paami's role? How did you end up picking Padma Chorol?
For Padma's role, we did actually consider a trained actor, but obviously we wanted an actor from Ladakh. It wasn't like we considered anybody... let's say, somebody popular from the Mumbai film industry. I wanted to cast someone popular from the region and I wanted that person to be extremely fluent on ice. And the thought of casting a real ice hockey player came exactly from the space that when Samzang Skitdon's character, Taashi, looks at the ice hockey player Paami, it should really be an impactful visual for her. She should really be inspired by the way she just about her business on the ice and the way she plays the game. I had met a lot of players before Padma and in just my first interaction with her, I was very sure I knew it was her; that I had found Paami. She also has a very warm personality. She has a very friendly face, a very friendly vibe. You can talk to her easily, and that's what I wanted:or a coach to be like that, because it's a very community-driven film. They all are there for each other in some way or the other. So when it came to the kids, they could be open enough to discuss their problems with her. At the same time, she also has an incredible drive to put ice hockey on the map, you know, and she's uh, she's been really doing well for herself in that regard.
Is a theatrical release in India expected? Is there interest from local distributors?
Regarding domestic distribution, we are still talking to people. We wrapped the film in July this year and applied to festivals like Busan and then, Dharamshala and Berlin. It's not like we've explored a lot yet. To answer your question, India release-wise, we are talking to people. There has been a lot of interest, obviously because it's a Ladakhi story that has sort of come out in the language after close to 25 years. So, there's absolute interest. While there's a lot of interest from Leh for sure, India-wise, we still need to find the right people who are invested in this subject, who really care about this ice hockey scene.
Is the film eligible for Oscar consideration?
We are still figuring it out. I guess we will know soon. But I don't think [it will happen] this year. I don't think we'll be eligible for consideration for the 99th Oscars, which will happen next year, because I think September 30 was the deadline. Besides, India-wise, the film will have to undergo certification as well before an Indian release. That hasn't happened yet. Depending on how the festival journey goes, we still have Berlin to look into. And that's something that we're really gunning for... maybe, like, an award there. Unfortunately, in Busan, we were not in the competitive space. But in Berlin, if we can have that going and if we can win an award, then that automatically qualifies us. And then, we sort of stand a chance to get an Oscar nomination.
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