Worldwide rights to Sudhanshu Saria's critically acclaimed debut feature film, LOEV, has been acquired exclusively by Netflix Inc.
Starring Shiv Pandit, Dhruv Ganesh and Siddharth Menon in principal roles, the film follows three friends on a weekend road trip as they struggle to define the boundaries between love and friendship. Written and directed by Saria, the film was jointly produced by Arfi Lamba and Katharina Suckale through their company Bombay Berlin Film Productions and Saria's Four Line Films.
"The only reason I was even able to write this film was because I was sure it wouldn't get made. So to find ourselves on the cusp of this kind of a prestigious, worldwide release is surreal!" Saria said.
The film has its world premiere at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival and has since played at more than 50 film festivals around the world including SXSW, Jeonju, BFI Flare, Frameline and Hong Kong, receiving distribution offers in multiple countries and the Best Film Audience Award in Tel Aviv.
"It might have seemed strange or risky to others but it was an obvious decision to me," said Arfi Lamba. "We listen to scripts all day long and when something this honest, relevant and emotional comes along, you jump and that's what we did."
The film has resonated with audiences all over the world and was sold in many countries internationally.
"It's just a pure win for me. Our audience truly is everywhere and Netflix makes it possible for us to reach them all, in 22 languages, with the push of a single button." Saria said. "What more can one ask for!"
The film will be released worldwide on May 1st, 2017.