By Anand Venkitachalam

New Delhi, Nov 15 (UNI) The most horrifying tales are the ones that are real, as portrayed by director Rajesh Touchriver in his feature ‘Dahini: The Witch’.

Shot mostly in Odisha, and in some areas of Andhra Pradesh, the film recently had its global premiere at the Indian Film Festival of Sydney.

It revolves around the lingering superstition of witches and the practice of witch-hunting in the remote areas in Eastern India, particularly in states such as Odisha.

The movie provides a haunting insight into the surprising presence of practices long-thought extinct.

Speaking to UNI, the Kerala-born filmmaker, describing the film and its surreal atmosphere of dread, remarked, “It’s not horror, at least not in that filmy Hollywood style, but rather a social crime-thriller.”

Touchdriver initially had plans to advertise his feature, and eventually give it a theatrical and OTT release. But the topic's sensitivity and the stark reality that it depicts, made it unappealing to theatre audiences, and even more so for streaming platforms, who refused to buy it.

“The film shows you that the reality of witch-hunting still happens in 2025. And the whole thing will not be able to make it to a show because we'll not get the certification from the censor board.”

Though more focused on atmospheric storytelling, often displaying the tropes of a horror film with steady, creeping, disconcerting reveals, the feature pays great attention to the "real" aspect of witch-hunting, with a marked lack of drama, as everything is portrayed in a manner similar to the way things pass in the real world.

Explaining the dichotomy -- where these areas, despite having full access to the internet, and modern technology, see the persistence of such superstitions - the director added, “This belief is rooted in the communities, across all communities. It is so deeply entrenched in them, that you can’t tell them otherwise. Rather, they can make you agree with their belief in the supernatural."

Recounting an incident, he said: “We actually had a co-producer, but he was so affected by the surety of the village’s beliefs in witches, that he fled because he believed in the villagers’ stories.”

A key theme of the feature is the importance and power of belief, and how it shapes perspectives.

Keeping the "realness" of the villagers’ beliefs in mind, the National Award-winning director explained the deliberate absence of any cinematic elements, stating, “They will attract more people, but they will also detract from the film’s principal themes."

“Beliefs are real, more than anything else. With beliefs, you can divide people and create new perspectives.”

The complexity of this topic is greatly compounded due to its social aspect of class and caste, as majority of those accused of engaging in black magic and witchcraft are from the Dalit community, living in the farthest corners of the village.

“In many of these remote places in Odisha, Chhattisgarh, and basically all the states in Eastern India, as well as in some of the eastern parts of NorthEast India, especially Assam, on the very outskirt areas, these beliefs are part of a long-practised ritualistic tradition, rooted in local village customs. Most of these are derived from folklore.”



“Actually, the Government of Assam was almost entirely oblivious to this practice. After I covered it, they became aware about witch-hunting. Now the Chief Minister has officially passed a law, banning this practice," he said.

The film, according to Touchriver, could also be considered the first step to realising something greater, describing ‘Dahini’ as the “trailer” for “another film.”

Though he himself is not fully sure what it could be or where it could lead to, the director said that the limitless possibilities of such topics, and themes, will greatly appertain to the taste buds of a vast silent audience, and could culminate into something even bigger in the near future.

Regarding his future works, the Idukki-born filmmaker said that he aims to cover the simplest aspects of human life, particularly focusing on the emotional angle, as this plain simplicity also underscores the greatest complexities in human relationships and society.

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