When former Civil Services aspirant Arjun Krish, 30, and homemaker Ria Dinesh, 50, came together at a filmmaking workshop hosted by actor-director Soumya Sadanandan in 2021, the duo bonded during a team exercise and made a short film together.
They eventually went on to pitch a one-line summary of a film — about a dysfunctional family on vacation, but are troubled by individual problems, which are solved during this trip. They went on to make it into a short film, F for Freedom, which recently won the award for Best Telefilm at the 33rd Kerala State Television Awards.
The film tells the story of a family through the eyes of Gauri Shyama, a classical dancer-turned-homemaker. Gauri, played by Laya Simpson, is a wife and mother of two. The film tackles themes such as individuality, alienation, patriarchy, and sexuality, among others.
Ria Dinesh and Arjun Krish
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Arjun, a cinephile since childhood, stumbled across filmmaking during the pandemic. After completing post-graduation in engineering, he appeared for the UPSC and reached till the interview stage. Later, he worked at a UPSC coaching centre till lockdown. “During the pandemic, like many others, I started exploring alternate passions. I realised that I enjoyed writing and direction. However, I did not have the means to join a film school,” says Arjun.
A still from F for Freedom
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Ria, currently settled at Kharghar, Navi Mumbai, enjoyed scripting skits, which were staged at Kerala Samajam, a socio-cultural organisation for Malayalis. “I, too, did not have a background in cinema. But after scripting a few plays, I thought of learning more, and that’s how I enrolled for the workshop. Once I reached there, I realised I was the oldest person there,” says Ria.
Arjun adds, “Even though Ria chechi was older than rest of the participants, she was the most enthusiastic person at the camp.”
The film has a few autobiographical elements from Ria’s life. She, like the protagonist, used to be a classical dancer but left her profession after she got married at the age of 20. “My children are still in awe of the fact that I made a short film,” says Ria.
The film, which had been on the cards since 2022, faced its share of challenges in finding a suitable cast and crew due to their lack of contacts within the film industry. “For the lead role, we were looking for someone young who knew classical dance. We reached out to Laya via social media, and through her, we discovered actor Sanju Sanichen (Kerala Crime Files), who plays the son’s role. The rest of the cast are our friends,” says Arjun, adding. “And most members of the crew are our DOP Puneet Mohan’s friends from film school.”
Veteran dubbing artist Sreeja Ravi won the award for Best Dubbing Artist for lending voice to the character Gauri. “After she saw the first cut of the film, we asked her to suggest someone suitable for the project. Even though we tried other artists, none was apt for the character. Later, she dubbed for a few scenes, which worked for both of us. More than our work getting recognised, we are happy that she won an award too,” says Arjun.
The duo believes this is just the beginning of their journey in cinema. “We also have our own banner, 10Degree N Dreams Studio, through which we want to promote upcoming talents,” says Arjun, who is currently working with a production house’s writers’ room.
Published – March 17, 2026 08:00 am IST
