In competition

Our Share of Sand

Directed by Shalini Adnani
India, United Kingdom, Greece 2026
Runtime 95'

After years apart, 12-year-old Maya returns to India with her mother to reunite with her father – a sandmining business man. Immersed in a world where labour, legacy and extraction collide, she forms a fragile bond with Kiran, a young worker. After a tragic accident, a police investigation turns Maya into a key witness, with her father relying on her to absolve him. Torn between loyalty and a growing unease she cannot name, Maya begins searching for the truth. As her mother quietly unravels, Maya uncovers a pattern of silence, exploitation and repeated harm forcing her to confront her father’s deception and the family’s complicity she must choose to break

Directed by
Shalini Adnani

Screenplay
Shalini Adnani

Cinematography
Adric Watson

Editing
Anna Meller

Music
Ted Regklis, Sarathy Korwar

Sound
Leandros Ntounis

Production Design
Devika Dave

Costumes
Karishma Acharya

Casting Direction
Lucy Pardee, Tess Joseph

Cast
Maya Mehta, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, Ellora Torchia, Krish Raj More, Ravi Ranjan, Jyoti Dogra

Production
Sara Bonakdar (Fifth Mirror Pictures), Alan McAelx (Suitable Pictures), Balthazar de Ganay, Giorgos Karnavas (Heretic),  Michael Graf

International Sales
Global Constellation

SIC 2026 -

Shalini Adnani (1988) is a Chilean-born, London-based filmmaker of Indian origin. Her debut feature, Our Share of Sand, supported by Film4 and the BFI, is having its world premiere at the 41. Settimana Internazionale della Critica of the Venice International Film Festival. Her short film White Ant premiered at Sundance, was acquired by Canal+ and went on to screen widely at international festivals. She was a 2025 Screen International Stars of Tomorrow. She is drawn to stories of power and desire and the intimate ways political forces shape private lives.