Project Papa-Synopsis :

Alisa and Papa, both striking reflections of each other, are at vastly different phases of their lives and are miles away from the people they used to be.

Alisa, the 29-year-old daughter, at the upswing of her career, is stressed out, overworked, under slept and believes that happiness is a thing of the future.

On the other hand, 64-year old Papa, on the verge of retirement, with suddenly nothing much to look forward to believes that happiness is a thing of the past.

Driven into a state of panic about how quickly her father is growing older, and slowly fading away from the man he used to be, Alisa, puts her life on hold, and along with her best friend, they embark upon Project Papa- her quest to fix him and give back what he gave her in abundance- love, memories and time. 

This movie will take you through her journey and fears, their conversations and memories, and most importantly her love, and everything she did to try to fix her father, and in turn, unknowingly, herself.

Runtime: 1hour 34minutes 54 seconds

Cast and Crew- Project Papa

Cast:

·       Rakesh Batra

·       Kanika Batra

·       Sneha Kapoor

·       Rajit Kapur

·       Anaitha Nair

·       Rohn Malhotra

·       Munira Sen

Credits:

Written and Directed by- Kanika Batra

Assistant Director-Nidhiya Mutunayagam

Director of Photography- Bhushan Bagadia

Edited by- Shalini Menon and Kanika Batra

Music Director- Dawn John Philip

Creative Director on Set- Jeet Singh

Associate Directors- Sudhindhra Nadigar-Jagadish Singh

Production Head- Nidhiya Mutunayagam

Production Manager: Ameet Joshi

Production Assistant: Saumit Banerjee

Art Direction: Nidhiya Mutunayagam and Ricky Tyler

Hair and Makeup: Svasti Immanena       

Wardrobe and Styling Coordination: Farah Merchant

DI and Sound Design- QLab Digital Post

DI Conformist: Gibu Daniel

DI Colourist: Devanshi Desai

Visual Effects and Special Effects: The Fusion Factory

Dubbing Director: Anuroop Nair

Dubbing, Sound Design and Production- Voicebox Productions                    

Audio Mixing Engineer- M. Kasim Parvez

Kanika Batra

Directors Biography- 

“A jack of all trades, and a master of- some

Cause learning never stops, and evolving is so much fun

Once a lawyer, now an entrepreneur and leadership facilitator,

Always an actor, a dancer, and now a first time filmmaker

So many hats to wear and so many things to be,

Living to make the most of life, while discovering all sides to me.”

Kanika Batra, is a 31 year old from Bangalore, India. She completed her Masters in Law from Kings College London, and after interning at the Supreme Court of London under Queen’s Council Toby Landau, and a brief stint of working with one of India’s top law firms, she combined her love for people and learning, and started a Learning and Development company, called Outperform.

Outperform caters to a niche set of clients, working with their talent to develop their professional and personal skills.

As a corporate speaker herself, Kanika has interacted with and run workshops for  over 7,000 people across top firms like Goldman Sachs, Ernst and Young, Mercedes, Northern Trust and several others. 

At the age of 9, she acted in and choreographed a mammoth children’s musical play that was written and directed by her father.

With a live orchestra, cast and crew of over 70 people, ‘Angelina’ ran successfully for 3 years with 27 house-full shows across India.

This introduced her to her love for theater, and since then she’s essayed the lead roles in several musical and non-musical plays.

Kanika has also played the lead in 2 feature films, Station and Joint Trip. 

True to her spirit of always wanting to learn and experience new things she started her production firm Metanoia Movies and has just written, directed, produced, and acted in her first feature film-Project Papa. 

Directors Statement

“Time is swiftly fleeting, and I’m not sure how long, 
I will have you close to me, to show me right from wrong 
So I’ll seize the moment, and proudly tell you today 
I love you, and need you Papa- every step of the way!” 

On a family holiday in December 2014, it hit me that my father was suddenly growing older. Also, my friends were losing their parents suddenly, without warning, and without having the chance to spend time with them. 

We’re so busy, with stressful lives, chasing one dream after the other, that we often neglect the importance of spending time with our parents, just learning from them and loving them, because we believe that ‘tomorrow’ will come. Well what if we lived like it just might not? Would priorities be different, would conversations be more, and could regret be less? 

And so was born a story about the importance of spending time with loved ones in the NOW, explored through the relationship between a father and a daughter- a bond that I consider to be the most symbiotic and precious one in my life. 

I started my firm called Metanoia Movies India, ran a successful Crowdfunding campaign, supported by  around 167 funders across the globe, and additionally, put in all my savings to see this beautiful story come to life, and possibly change someone else’s. 

Writing, producing, acting and directing, all together for the very first time, is a joy that has surpassed the struggle and patience it took to get here. 

Project Papa began as a creative release from my manic lifestyle as I needed to share something with the world. But mostly, it’s been a manifestation of my innocent plan to spend more time with my Papa (who plays the lead along with me) and create a memory that will last forever.