Pistulya
2009 Marathi language short film directed by Nagraj Manjule
Pistulya is an Indian Marathi-language short film written and directed by Nagraj Manjule and jointly produced by Aatpat Production and New Arts DCS. The film won National Film Award for Best First Non-Feature Film of a Director and Best Child Artist Award in Non-feature Film category at the 58th National Film Awards. The film features Suraj Pawar in the title role, Vaishali Kendale, and Nagraj Manjule in pivotal roles. The film focuses on the story of a village boy, struggle to educate himself against the odds.
Nagraj Manjule created the film as part of his mass communication course at Pune University, aiming to capture the ethos of a marginalized community living as tramps and address social stigma while expressing a desire for reform. The film was shot over two days in Ahmednagar, with a production cost of ₹1.5 lakh funded by Manjule's friends and family.
The film was screened at Vaanam Art Festival on 8 April 2023.
Plot
Pistulya, an 8-year-old boy from the marginalized Waddar community, suddenly loses his father and faces severe poverty alongside his mother. Striking a desperate deal for quick cash, he falls into the clutches of local thugs. However, while navigating this perilous path, a chance encounter with a school assembly stirs something profound within him. Observing peers of his age, clad in clean uniforms and reciting prayers, he glimpses a world entirely separate from his own.
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Object files, edition statements, performance records and contemporary criticism preserve different stages of the work’s history. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 9, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q116282828. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 2023.
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