Budding Filmmaker Spotlights Unsung Heroes of Indian Cinema in Dream Factory

Aarushi Nigam, a budding filmmaker, is set to premiere her documentary Dream Factory at the Yellowstone International Film Festival in Mumbai on November 18, 2025. The 80-minute film turns the camera towards the unsung heroes of the Indian film industry, such as gaffers, stuntmen, and bouncers, who are often overlooked in the glitz and glamour of Bollywood.

The idea for the documentary stemmed from Aarushi's curiosity about the inner workings of the Indian film industry while studying filmmaking at Emerson College in Boston. She shadowed the crew on the sets of Rohit Dhawan's 2023 film Shehzada to gain a deeper understanding of the roles played by these behind-the-scenes workers.

Dream Factory has already earned Aarushi the Best Director award at the Mumbai Independent Film Festival. The documentary also features in Rolling Stone India's list of Must-See Indie Films at the Yellowstone International Film Festival 2025, with the publication describing it as having "the gritty realism of Faiza Ahmad Khan's Supermen of Malegaon."

The film sheds light on the demanding and often overlooked work of these unsung heroes, such as the lightman who arrives on set first to set up the lights and is the last to leave, ensuring all the expensive equipment is safely packed up. Aarushi's documentary aims to give these individuals the recognition they deserve for their crucial contributions to the filmmaking process.