Nithin Lukose’s debut feature film as a writer-director in the Malayalam language, PAKA (River of Blood), is having its World Premiere at the 46th edition of the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), held from September 9-19, 2021.

PAKA is a tale of a river that swells with the blood of two feuding families and a young couple that tries to overcome this hatred with their love.

In North Kerala, a serpentine river, witness to the long and bloody cycle of vengeance between two feuding families. Johnny and Anna, a young couple, wish to end the hatred within their families with their love and begin a life together. However, the return of Johnny’s uncle Kocheppu, after imprisonment and his subsequent disappearance, becomes a hurdle in their path of love and forces them onto the path of blood, murder, and revenge.

The film set in Wayanad of North Kerala stars Basil Paulose (Johnny), Vinitha Koshy (Anna), Jose Kizhakkan (Kochappan), Athul John (Paachi), Nithin George (Joey), Joseph Manickal (Varkey).

Excited about the TIFF Premiere, debut filmmaker Nithin Lukose, an FTII graduate and the sound designer of Thithi and Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar says, “I’m delighted and honored to see my directorial debut, PAKA (River of Blood), part of 46th Toronto International Film Festival. I was fascinated by the stories and myths my grandmother told me when I was young. PAKA is a manifestation of that fascination. The idea was to tell a universal story that can appeal to the global audience while keeping the film rooted in the cultural attributes of the remote village I grew up in and the people I love. It’s a matter of pride that a regional film like our’s is getting a platform through a globally renowned festival like TIFF.”

Watch the first trailer for PAKA (River of Blood).