With Wench Film Festival, Sapna Bhavnani Is Creating The Horror Community India Never Had
From struggling to program one Indian film to now screening twenty, Wench Film Festival, the country's first dedicated to the horror genre, returns for its 6th edition in Mumbai from February 26 to March 2.
By Minal Rudra
Published : February 23, 2026 at 5:23 PM IST
|Updated : February 24, 2026 at 9:22 AM IST
In Indian cinema, particularly within the horror genre, stories of vulnerable populations (read women and non-binary people) remain underrepresented, and the limited portrayals that do exist often fall into stereotypes. While the mainstream is busy latching on to horror comedy, serious genre storytelling by women, with women at its center, remains rare. With a few notable exceptions in the mainstream, such as Anvita Dutt's Bulbbul or subtle layers of queerness in Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3, the lens through which we see horror is still very much male-gaze tinted. Scary and sexy.
What such storytelling needs is not just talent. It demands an ecosystem that supports, nurtures, and amplifies voices that are silenced by the system. That is precisely where Sapna Moti Bhavnani’s brainchild, Wench Film Festival (WFF) steps in.
India's first genre festival dedicated to horror, sci-fi, fantasy, and speculative storytelling, WFF returns to Mumbai for its 6th edition. Before the curtain rises on February 26, Bhavnani, along with chief programmers Shelagh Rowan-Legg and Heidi Honeycutt, opens up about what's in store for horror enthusiasts at WFF 2026 and what it takes to kick it up a notch higher with each edition.
“It cannot become easier because with each edition, my expectations keep getting bigger. I expect more from myself and the cinema that we can bring to people in India," says Bhavnani, the celebrity hairstylist-turned-filmmaker.
While the canvas gets bigger, at its core, Wench remains committed to empowering women and non-binary voices. International programmer Heidi Honeycutt, who has been curating for Wench since 2024, explains that the focus remains on looking beyond cultural context while keeping the core values intact.
"The primary aim is to showcase diverse voices and styles but still appeal to the universal message of Wench: equality and diversity through the introduction of great new films to India," shares the American actress, filmmaker, and programmer on curating genre experience for Indian audiences.
WFF 2026 opens with the India premiere of Ritesh Gupta's The Red Mask and closes with Adams family's Mother of Flies, a Fantasia International Film Festival winner. In between, the festival promises a lineup that Bhavnani says is beyond “cliche knee-jerk sort of horror.”
Canada-based critic and programmer Shelagh Rowan-Legg adds that emotional or intellectual impact towers above everything else when it comes to lineup curation.
"As every year, the lineup is aiming to bring a set of stories that are unique or have a unique approach to a familiar story... something that speaks to what connects it to the human condition and how fantastically the genre is used to tell the story," shares Shelagh.
Since its debut in 2021, Wench has screened 188 films and spotlighted 495 women. Today, it is also a member of the prestigious Méilès International Festivals Federation and is slowly making space for India on the global genre cinema map.
That said, the journey has been anything but easy. “Running a festival with a small team is a really big thing anyway,” she says. But there is a ring of excitement when she shares that WFF 2026 is their biggest year so far. What excites her most is the rise in Indian submissions.
“When we started Wench, we literally had one film to program from India. We used to struggle for homegrown stories, but today, we have reached a stage where we have India-focused days. From the 52 films that will be showcased during the sixth edition, 20 are from India, 8 from Asia, and 33 are directed by women.
Bhavnani also credits the flexible policies of the fest for increasing reach. “It is our stand on what we accept. We are very open about it. We are the only festival that has a ‘man section’. If you are a man, you submit there. Even then, your film must have a woman protagonist or women in key roles.” She adds that while 33 are women-directed, all 52 films are strong in their female representation. The closing day, titled Female Drishti, is fully dedicated to films made by women.
She is closely involved in the curation process, especially for India and Asia, alongside international programmers like Shelagh and Heidi. When asked about emerging trends in horror, she resists boxing the genre but notes a shift in India towards exploring local spirits and folklore rather than copying Western tropes.
Heidi takes great pain in looking for films that are rooted in culture yet speak to a universal audience. "I look for films that are about specific cultures within Europe or that tell stories in exotic settings that are shockingly relatable no matter where you are from. I also want the films to be fast-paced, fun to view in a theater, and experimental with fantastical situations."
For Shelagh, there isn’t a single deciding factor that makes the cut. "Usually it's a combination of a few things. It doesn’t have to have a big budget nor feature famous actors. If it’s telling a good story, with good performances, and can give me an emotional or intellectual reaction, that’s a film that stays with me, and I hope will affect the Wench audience," she says.
Bhavnani's own short film, Landfills of Desire, will screen at the festival but is not in competition. “I submit it like everyone else does,” she clarifies. Shot in Kashmir during Covid, the film draws from the folklore of the Rantas, a Kashmiri witch. “Kashmir is always shown through its scenic splendour, snow-capped mountains and crystal-clear lakes. But I wanted to capture its silence in chilling nights,” she says.
Without mincing words, Bhavnani speaks about gaps in the horror scene in India. “We don’t even have one (horror scene). We are creating the blueprint for the genre as we speak,” she says bluntly. She points out that sponsors often do not understand a festival that does not revolve around red carpets and celebrities. “Horror does not need celebrities. In fact, if you put a celebrity in it, it kills the horror film. So the beauty of these films is that they are not celeb-led. They are very filmmaker-led. Hence, it comes easier to draw the attention to cinema." But she admits that it is hard to market a film fest sans celebs. "It will take time for people to understand that our focus is cinema and not the red carpet gloss.”
Last year, Wench took seven Indian films to Fantastic Fest in Austin. “We are constantly trying to get our ghosts and spirits to the world,” she says. “Instead of following Dracula or the Wicked Witch of the West, we have our own ghosts; we just need to look into our own backyards."
She is also candid about where India needs improvement. “A lot has to be invested in writing. That’s where we really lack.” This year, Wench plans to focus more on workshops and strengthening the writing ecosystem. The festival is not just an annual event. Monthly screenings and Q&As that follow at Alliance Française in Churchgate, Mumbai, often run with a full house. “We literally have to stop conversations because we have to vacate the space,” she laughs. “People are hungry for this.”
As Wench is all set to expand conversations around AI, Sapna shares that it's merely a tool and not some mighty magic wand. She believes it can help indie filmmakers reduce costs and experiment, but great work, whether in film or AI, still demands skill. “It is not easy to create great work. That is why so much generic stuff keeps coming out.”
Sapna’s long-term vision is ambitious. “I would love for Wench to become like Sundance, more educational. To have labs. To have an institute where people can come and learn genre.”
For now, she finds satisfaction in the organic growth. “There is no money. Zero funding. But we are growing bigger with each passing year, and that is the essence of a true community. You cannot buy that with money.”
Where & When
What: 6th edition of the Wench Film Festival (WFF)
Where: Mumbai
When: February 26–March 2, 2026 (festival opens February 26)
Opening & Closing Films
Opening Night: The Red Mask (India premiere) directed by Ritesh Gupta
Closing Film: Mother of Flies (Fantasia winner)
