Aanand L. Rai on Strong Female Characters in His Films: ‘We Owe a Debt of Gratitude to All the Women in Our Lives’

From ‘Tanu Weds Manu’ and ‘Raanjhanaa’ to ‘Zero’, ‘Atrangi Re’, ‘Raksha Bandhan’ and ‘Tere Ishk Mein’, filmmaker Aanand L. Rai and writer Himanshu Sharma have built a creative partnership known for bringing layered and memorable characters to the screen. Now, the duo is back with ‘Nayyi Navelli’, and during the film’s trailer launch in Mumbai, Aanand opened up about the strong female characters that have featured across their collaborations. Asked about their representation of women, the filmmaker explained that many of these characters are inspired by the women they have personally seen and known.

Aanand said, “Well, regarding both Himanshu and myself, I would say that the characters we’ve portrayed are inspired by the women we’ve seen around us—whether I speak about my mother, my wife, or his mother. We have witnessed strong female figures in our families and surroundings—personalities who have kept us standing tall, who have given us strength. That legacy of strength has always been there.” For Rai, the strength seen in these characters is therefore not something created simply for cinematic effect, but something that comes from observing the women who have shaped their lives and experiences.

He went on to connect that thought directly with ‘Nayyi Navelli’ and its leading lady Yami Gautam Dhar. Aanand added, “For instance, even with this film—just yesterday, I was telling Yami, 'You are such a fine student and such a capable fighter that I feel like learning so much from you.' You know, it’s not as if we simply conjured these characters out of thin air; these are characters we see reflected in the women around us. We owe a debt of gratitude to all the women in our lives,” he said, highlighting how real-life observations continue to influence the women they bring to their stories.

In Nayyi Navelli, Yami plays Mohini, a picture-perfect new bride who enters a chaotic family in Meerut and initially appears to bring happiness, harmony and order into the household. However, the seemingly perfect family story soon takes an unexpected supernatural turn when Mohini’s suspicious brother-in-law starts noticing strange occurrences and begins questioning whether the new daughter-in-law could actually be a Daayan. The film blends fantasy, horror, comedy and family drama, giving Yami a character whose true nature becomes one of the story’s central mysteries.

The film marks the Bollywood directorial debut of Tamil filmmaker Balaji Mohan and is jointly produced by Amazon MGM Studios and Colour Yellow Productions, led by Aanand L. Rai and Himanshu Sharma. With their latest collaboration, the creative duo once again steps into a world where family relationships and strong personalities drive the story, this time against a supernatural backdrop. The film also features Addinath Kothare, Sonal Jha, Mita Vashisth and others in key roles, adding to the ensemble surrounding Yami’s character.

Nayyi Navelli is scheduled to release in cinemas on October 16, 2026, coinciding with Dussehra. As Aanand L. Rai and Himanshu Sharma return with another collaboration, their comments at the trailer launch offer an interesting insight into the women who have inspired their storytelling over the years. With Mohini at the centre of this new fantasy horror-comedy, audiences will soon get to see how that creative philosophy translates into a character who appears to be the perfect new bride—but may be hiding a supernatural secret of her own.

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