Tanya Maniktala wins IFFJK Best Actress for Arifa from Muhabbat Se

Tanya Maniktala won the Best Actress Award for ‘Arifa’ at IFFJK

[popcorn number="Oct" desc="Theatrical release month of the anthology ‘Muhabbat Se'" class="Default"]

Arifa is the personification of the unspoken anomaly," starts off Tanya Maniktala as she wins the Best Actress Award for Rohin Raveendran Nair's Arifa, one of three chapters in the anthology Muhabbat Se, which premièred at the International Film Festival of Jammu & Kashmir (IFFJK) on September 8.

Tanya Maniktala in and as ‘Arifa'

Directed by Nair, Durgesh Singh, and Palash Vaswani, and produced by Dimpy Agarwal and Azim Premji Foundation, Muhabbat Se presents stories that look beyond conventional narratives to explore the human experiences, relationships, and emotions that connect people to Kashmir.

Rohin Raveendran Nair

Describing her character, Maniktala says, "A father-daughter relationship is rarely ever cut out straight and even more so when there's so much left unsaid. Arifa wants to be seen, heard, and acknowledged, but she quietly carries the weight of the unresolved [issues], which in my eyes, render her the strength that almost feels like an extension of the hurt she has been carrying." The actor says the writing drew her to the short, calling it "poetic". "The complexity of human connections and relationships [when] so much is left unsaid between the lines is what drew me in."

Nair says the film explores "forgiveness and finding peace before it is too late". "As Arifa confronts her dying father, she embarks on an arduous emotional journey while searching for unspoken answers to her questions."