SRINAGAR, SEPTEMBER 4: Three short documentaries from filmmaker Bharatbala’s Virtual Bharat series have been selected for screening at the International Film Festival of Jammu & Kashmir (IFFJK) 2026, scheduled to be held from September 7 to 10 across Srinagar, Jammu and Gulmarg.
The selected films—Naqsh-e-Daur: The Story of Ghulam Nabi Dar, Taleem and Kunemechi: A Home Carved in Ancestry—highlight India’s traditional crafts, cultural heritage and stories of communities preserving their ancestral knowledge.
Naqsh-e-Daur and Taleem have been selected for the J&K Select Competition Section, while Kunemechi: A Home Carved in Ancestry will be screened in the Non-Competition Section.
Set in Srinagar’s Safakadal, Naqsh-e-Daur follows master craftsman Ghulam Nabi Dar, who has spent six decades carving Kashmir’s heritage into walnut wood. Trained under Noor Din Tikoo, Dar continues to preserve traditional chinar motifs and Quranic calligraphy while mentoring younger artisans.
Taleem explores Kashmir’s centuries-old carpet-weaving tradition and the oral code known as “Taleem”, which guides artisans in creating intricate silk and wool carpets. The documentary captures the collective effort of spinners, dyers, weavers and finishers involved in the craft.
Kunemechi travels to Dimapur, Nagaland, where Phesao builds a traditional home by hand, combining inherited Naga woodcarving traditions with formal artistic training. The film portrays his efforts to pass the craft and its values to the next generation.
IFFJK 2026, organised by the Department of Information and Public Relations, Government of Jammu & Kashmir, is the Union Territory’s first international film festival. The festival has shortlisted 135 films from 41 countries from more than 1,100 entries received from over 50 countries.
The festival will feature screenings at SKICC and INOX Multiplex in Srinagar, Movie Time Cinemas in Jammu and the Gulmarg Convention Centre. An Emerging Filmmakers Contest has also been planned to provide a platform to local filmmaking talent.
A five-member international jury, including cinematographer-director Santosh Sivan, Oscar- and BAFTA-winning sound designer Resul Pookutty, German film curator Dorothee Wenner, media entrepreneur Keiko Bang and National Award-winning filmmaker Himansu Sekhar Khatua, will evaluate films across various competition sections.
Virtual Bharat, launched by Bharatbala on August 15, 2019, is envisioned as a collection of 1,000 short documentaries chronicling India’s lesser-known people, traditions, art and folklore.
The project, described as “culture on the cloud”, aims to preserve cultural knowledge and provide a cinematic platform to communities and traditions from across the country. Its collaborators have included A.R. Rahman, Gulzar and Shreya Ghoshal.
Bharatbala Ganapathy is an Indian filmmaker, screenwriter and producer known for his work in films, documentaries and advertising. He has also directed the patriotic music videos Vande Mataram and Jana Gana Mana, besides feature films including Hari Om and Maryan. He recently received the National Award for Best Documentary for Ramnami.
