THE FOREST – drama, shot on location in India & Thailand, 88 min., s-35mm, 2006/07, cinema release 2012

Director: Ashvin Kumar
Producer: Judith James
Production: Lindine Limited, UK/US/Indian coproduction
Cast: Javed Jaffrey, Nandana Sen, Ankur Vikal, Salim Ali Zaidi, Tarun Shukla

Pritam and Radha marriage is on the rocks. They arrive at an Indian game reserve for a holiday to sort out their problems but are denied entry by an obdurate forest warden, Bhola Ram. A man-eating leopard is operating in the area and rest houses have been shut. Who should they meet at the gates after twenty years of separation, but tall and handsome Abhishek, Radha’s ex-lover and Pritam’s rival from their college days together.
Using his power as a top-cop in the district, Abhishek overrules Bhola Ram and allows the couple entry into the forest but also invites himself and his son Arjun over to their rest-house for the night. Here, he uncovers a dark secret from their past life.
The stage is set for a vicious triangle as dark secrets are revealed and dangerous mind-games are played under the guise of friendship and fun – night falls ominously and the friends get drunk together – and all the while they are being watched by eyes in the forest. Mysteriously, a leg of lamb disappears from the camp fire and leopard’s pug marks are seen over Arjun’s footprints…