Nepali short film ‘Maya’ has won the Best International Short Film award at 13th London Independent Film Festival that took place between 14th to 25th April. The 15-minute film produced by Tom Cullingham and directed by Veemsen Lama is a story of three children; Maya, Bikram and Kanchha; who succeed in running away from human traffickers but have to go through a tough time surviving on the streets of Kathmandu.

Talking with NeoStuffs from London, director Lama said, “Winning this prestigious award is our biggest win so far. I feel over the moon. I had never thought that we could win out of hundreds of other films. This film is very personal to us because we were in Nepal just four weeks before the earthquake hit the nation and the film captures some important landscapes and landmarks that no longer exist. I would like to dedicate this award to everyone who lost their lives, their families and those who are still affected by the quake.”

According to Lama, the film which has so far been screened at various film festivals such as Raindance Film Festival, London Short Film Festival, Valleta Film Festival Malta, Wairoa Maori Film Festival New Zealand among others will be screened in Nepal this summer.

Filmmaker Lama who has so far bagged multiple awards for his various short films, resides in London. He left the service of British armed forces to follow his passion for storytelling and completed his graduation in film-making. He recently finished the shoot of his upcoming short film ‘Chyanti’ in Mustang. He is raising fund for the film that is currently under post production. If you want to be a part of it, you can donate HERE. You can get connected with him HERE.

Watch the trailer of ‘Maya’ below and let us know what you think of it.