“Homebound”, interview with the director Neeraj Ghaywan

At the 78th Festival de Cannes, we spoke with director Neeraj Ghaywan about his powerful new film “Homebound“, presented in the Un Certain Regard section. Set in a small North Indian village, “Homebound” follows two childhood friends from a marginalized community as they pursue a police job they believe will grant them dignity—only to find themselves tested by desperation, identity, and their evolving bond.

A Story of Friendship, Dignity, and Discovery

Neeraj Ghaywan describes “Homebound” as “a very universal story of two friends who come from a marginalized background.” The pursuit of a police job becomes a symbolic escape—“They think that if they get a police job, they won’t be shamed again… they won’t be treated badly.” Yet, the deeper journey is one of self-discovery and emotional reckoning.

Inspired by a real-life story published in The New York Times, Ghaywan fictionalized the lives of two boys “traveling during COVID times” to explore themes of systemic injustice and the desire for human dignity.

From Statistics to Souls

One of the film’s strongest ethical currents is its insistence on humanizing the unseen. As Ghaywan explains, “Migrants, people of color, minorities—they are only seen as a statistic. But what if we actually find two people out of that statistic?” This is where Homebound breaks from the pattern of tragedy-only narratives.

His intention is clear: “Maybe that is when people will see the human side… and we’ll want to have empathy and kindness.”

Realism over Performance

For Ghaywan, authenticity trumps dramatic flair. “Just good acting is not enough,” he says. To prepare the cast, he had actors “live in villages, soak in the atmosphere… sit in homes, eat, speak to the people.” The goal: to adopt lived truth rather than imitate it.

He even created a set rule called “code 360,” an emotional protocol where “everyone talks in hushed tones” to match the sensitivity of the scene. This immersive method aims to “replicate the tone of real life on screen.”

A Film That Embraces Joy and Pain

While the story is rooted in hardship, Ghaywan insists on emotional balance. “I didn’t want to only show pathos. I wanted to show the humanity—how they love, what jokes they make, what they eat.” Quoting Rilke—“Let everything happen to you: beauty and terror—no feeling is final”—he frames Homebound as an emotional mosaic, blending humor, struggle, and warmth.

This commitment to complexity is also a critique of the “urban gaze”, which often patronizes marginalized characters. Ghaywan pushes back: “They also have joy, ambition, teasing, fun… I just didn’t want to make it like ‘two poor people going through life.’”

A Filmmaker’s Responsibility

In an era of silenced voices, Ghaywan sees cinema as a moral action. “For us artists, the only way to speak is through our art,” he says. While he avoids imposing his politics on characters, he believes that storytelling itself is an “act of patriotism… to help people understand what others are going through.”

His influences—Ken Loach, the Dardenne Brothers, and Federico Fellini—speak to his ethos: art should entertain, move, and provoke reflection.

Escape and Return

Asked whether “Homebound“ is a film of escape or return, Ghaywan replies: “Wow… actually it is both.” His characters seek to flee their social realities, but also “come back home… accept their identities.” The journey is one of maturation, heartbreak, and ultimately, a return to self.

A Decade Since Masaan

Ten years after his acclaimed debut Masaan, Ghaywan reflects on his path: “A lot of studios wanted to make films with me… but I was my own enemy.” He waited for a story that “touches my deepest core.” And with “Homebound“, he found it.

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