Angh wins at Toronto Film Festival: Theja Rio's Nagaland story gets global honour

Theja Rio's debut feature Angh won the Platform Prize at TIFF 2026. The award places a story rooted in Nagaland's Konyak culture on a major global stage.

In Short

• Nagaland filmmaker Theja Rio's debut feature Angh wins Platform Prize at TIFF 2026
• Angh is the only Indian film in the 12-film Platform competition
• Film depicts 1960s Konyak community facing tradition versus change

Nagaland filmmaker Theja Rio’s debut feature Angh won the Platform Prize at the 2026 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), putting a deeply rooted story from the state’s Konyak community on one of the world’s biggest film stages. Set in the early 1960s, the film looks at a community caught between its old ways and a rapidly changing world. It was also the only Indian film in this year’s 12-film Platform competition.

The win comes with a trophy and CAD 20,000 in prize money. More importantly, it marks a major international moment for Rio, whose film brings the history, culture and changing identity of Nagaland to an audience far beyond the region.

What happened at TIFF 2026?

Angh had its world premiere at TIFF on September 15 and competed in the festival’s Platform section, which is dedicated to filmmakers with distinctive voices and strong directorial visions.

The Platform competition is TIFF’s only juried section, with 12 films from around the world in contention this year. Rio’s film emerged with the top prize, along with CAD 20,000.

TIFF chief executive Cameron Bailey had strong words for the film, calling it “a magnificent film, something we have never seen before” and describing it as “a really singular piece of work”.

The Platform jury was equally taken by Rio’s approach. In its citation, the jury said the prize went to Angh for its “refreshing perspective”, filmmaking strength and “deeply resonant portrait of a world”. The jury also praised Rio’s “vision, audacity and courage”.

Filmmaker and actor Anurag Kashyap also celebrated the win on Instagram. Sharing the news, he wrote, “Theja Rio’s ‘Angh’ wins the platform award at @tiff_net and gets a direct entry into the best foreign film category at the Academy Awards. Congratulations team. Let the right one in.”

See his post here:

The Platform Prize is significant beyond TIFF itself. Launched in 2015 and inspired by Jia Zhang-ke’s film Platform, the competition is built around strong filmmaking voices and distinctive storytelling. The award is also among a small group of international festival prizes that have a direct pathway to the Oscars.

What is Angh about?

Set in a remote Konyak village near the Indo-Burma border in the early 1960s, Angh follows Anghba, the last surviving chief of a village that has been deserted by its people.

He remains behind with his ailing wife and his speech-impaired son, holding on to a way of life that is slowly disappearing around him. Their quiet existence is disturbed by the arrival of an American missionary, whose presence brings new religious beliefs, social customs and a different way of life to the community.

At the centre of the film is the relationship between a father and son. As the missionary’s influence grows, Anghba tries to protect the beliefs and customs passed down through generations, while his son begins to be drawn towards the comforts and possibilities offered by the mission.

It’s this tension – between tradition and change, belonging and belief – that gives Angh its emotional core. Rather than treating the transformation of the community as a simple clash between two sides, Rio observes what happens to people when the world they know begins to shift beneath them.

The film is also closely tied to Naga storytelling and spiritual traditions. Shot on 16mm, it uses the texture of the format and its remote setting to create a sense of a world caught in time.

Watch the trailer here:

Who is Theja Rio?

For Rio, Angh is the feature-length continuation of a story he first told through a 2021 short of the same name. That film travelled to international festivals, including Palm Springs and Clermont-Ferrand, where it won a Special Jury Award.

Rio, who is from Nagaland, studied at the UK’s National Film and Television School and has previously directed Dissociate, Checkpost, Angh and Ade (On a Sunday). His work has consistently focused on stories and voices from Northeast India that don't often find space on the international film circuit.

The feature stars Douglas Henshall alongside Anghlong Konyak, Sobino Rengma, Genpai Konyak, Amah Konyak and Wangton Konyak. Rio directed the film and co-wrote the screenplay with Rajkumar Kandamudi. The technical team includes cinematographer Shreyaas Krishna, composer Jakes Bejoy, editor Karthika Srinivas R, production designer GM Sekhar and stunt choreographer Kecha Khamphakdee.

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