Mumba Devi Motion Pictures‘ latest feature “I’m Not an Actor” (“Main Actor Nahin Hoon”), starring Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Chitrangada Satarupa, will have its world premiere at the 2025 Cinequest Film Festival in California this March.
The Hindi and English-language drama, directed by Aditya Kripalani, follows a frustrated but puritanical actor in Mumbai who spends a day teaching acting to a depressed recently retired banker in Frankfurt over video calls. The film was uniquely shot simultaneously across India and Germany over 28 days, with both lead actors performing their scenes live via video chat despite challenging weather conditions and a 4.5-hour time difference between locations.
Kripalani chose this unconventional approach to capture authentic video call interactions between the characters. “The film has a conversation that runs through a single day across two countries on a video call. Somehow in real life when a conversation is happening on a video call, if it’s intense, we almost forget that a screen is involved. And we aimed to make the same happen through the conversations in the film,” Kripalani explained. “To achieve this, we shot both sides simultaneously. One team in Frankfurt and one team in Mumbai.”
“Labelling someone makes us feel at ease because it gives this false idea that we have understood someone; when it actually does exactly the contrary and creates walls for us to then slowly and painstakingly scale,” added Kripalani, explaining the film’s themes. “The film takes a look at how our labels keep us away from the core idea that human beings are at a much deeper level, so much alike.”
For Siddiqui, who also serves as a producer via his Side Hero Entertainment, the role offered fresh territory: “The idea of me playing a banker who learns acting was exciting from the start. I’d never heard of a script like this,” the “Sacred Games” star said. “It seemed like the right kind of script to come on board with. Specially since Aditya has explored so much about the craft of acting in the film.”
The ambitious production faced unique challenges due to its intercontinental live shooting approach. “While I was freezing at 2 degrees [in Frankfurt], in India sometimes due to extreme heat the cameras would overheat and we’d have to stop shoot for hours,” Siddiqui noted.
Satarupa, who shot her scenes in Mumbai, called the experience both demanding and fulfilling: “Balancing the logistical complexities while staying true to the character, and shooting in the intense Mumbai heat at real locations – sometimes even guerrilla-style – was no easy feat.”
Following its world premiere, producer Sweta Chhabria confirmed plans for European, U.K. and Asian premieres for the film, with aims for a limited theatrical release in India followed by a streaming platform release. Ranjan Singh (“Kennedy”) serves as associate producer.
“I’m Not an Actor” marks the latest socially conscious feature from Mumba Devi Motion Pictures, following their Netpac Award-winning “Devi Aur Hero” (2019) and Fipresci Prize recipient “Not Today” (2021).