Natesh Hegde’s Kannada crime drama Tiger’s Pond gets noticed by Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi

(From left) Natesh Hegde and Jafar Panahi

Iranian cinema sparked director Natesh Hegde's love for movies. Imagine his joy then that his latest work, Tiger's Pond, piqued acclaimed Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi's curiosity. The Kannada crime drama, backed by Anurag Kashyap, was screened on June 10 at the ongoing Sydney Film Festival. Panahi, who was at the film gala, sought Hegde out to chat about the film's themes and offer his support.

The director is naturally touched by the gesture, as he says, "It was great to meet Mr Jafar Panahi in Sydney. He had heard about our film after the screening, and [wanted] to watch it."

A still from Tiger's Pond

Panahi is a part of the Iranian New Wave cinema, with The Circle (2000), Taxi (2015), and the recent It Was Just an Accident to his credit. For Hegde, meeting the filmmaker is special for a particular reason. "I started making films because of Abbas Kiarostami's Close-up [1990]. Abbas passed away before I made my first film. So, the desire to show my film to him isn't possible. But after meeting Jafar Panahi, a friend and student of Abbas, I felt like meeting a senior student from the same college. I have always looked up to his films, and I'll be thrilled if he likes Tiger's Pond," says the director, whose crime drama follows a ruthless businessman's bid to manipulate local elections, thus exploring power, faith, and caste dynamics.

Watch them, stat!

Immerse in Jafar Panahi's world with The Circle (2000), Taxi (2015), and No Bears (2022). The filmmaker won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival 2025 for It Was Just an Accident