1. Media Space

  2. Press Releases

Winner of TIFF’s Amplify Voices Award for Best Canadian Feature Film and Best Documentary at the Palm Springs International Film Festival. Nisha Pahuja’s acclaimed feature documentary To Kill a Tiger begins national theatrical tour in February.

PRESS RELEASE
18/01/2023

“To Kill a Tiger is a story of how one family’s strength can overcome even the most heinous injustices. Nisha is an incredibly powerful storyteller and her film is a triumph. Everyone should see it.”

– Mindy Kaling

January 18, 2023 – Toronto – National Film Board of Canada

Toronto filmmaker Nisha Pahuja’s award-winning feature-length documentary To Kill a Tiger, co-produced by Notice Pictures and the National Film Board of Canada (NFB), will be screening in cinemas across Canada starting February 9.

In To Kill a Tiger, Ranjit, a farmer in Jharkhand, India, takes on the fight of his life when he demands justice for his 13-year-old daughter, the victim of a brutal gang rape. In India, where a rape is reported every 20 minutes and conviction rates are less than 30 percent, Ranjit’s decision to support his daughter is virtually unheard of, and his journey unprecedented.

At its world premiere at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), To Kill a Tiger won the Amplify Voices Award for Best Canadian Feature Film. Other notable awards include the Inspiring Voices and Perspectives Feature Film Award at Cinefest Sudbury and, most recently, Best Documentary at the Palm Springs International Film Festival. To Kill a Tiger was also named to Canada’s Top Ten, an annual list of the country’s finest films selected by TIFF, and Pahuja was awarded the DOC Vanguard Award by the DOC Institute of Canada.

Confirmed tour dates include Toronto, Hamilton, Montreal, Vancouver and Edmonton—following a special TIFF Canada’s Top Ten screening in Toronto on January 29.

National schedule

  • January 29 at 1 p.m. at the TIFF Bell Lightbox (Canada’s Top Ten)
    • In-person Q&A with director Nisha Pahuja
  • Opens February 9 at Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema in Toronto
    • Kicking off with special post-screening Q&A on February 9, moderated by Oscar-nominated filmmaker Deepa Mehta, with director Nisha Pahuja and editor Mike Munn (Co-presented with the DOC Institute).
  • Opens February 10 at The Westdale in Hamilton
    • In-person Q&A with director Nisha Pahuja February 11
  • Opens February 10 at Cinéma du Parc in Montreal (in English and French)
  • Opens February 10 at the VIFF Centre in Vancouver
    • Virtual Q&A with director Nisha Pahuja TBC
  • February 11 & 14 at the Metro Cinema in Edmonton

To Kill a Tiger by Nisha Pahuja (125 min)
Produced by Cornelia Principe and Nisha Pahuja for Notice Pictures, and David Oppenheim for the NFB. Executive produced by Andy Cohen, Anita Lee, Drew Dragoumis and Dr. Atul Gawande.
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/to-kill-a-tiger

• On the night of a family wedding in a village in India, Ranjit’s daughter is dragged into the woods and raped by three men. Ranjit takes on the fight of his life when he demands the accused be brought to justice. With tremendous access to all facets of the story, To Kill a Tiger charts the emotional journey of an ordinary man thrown into extraordinary circumstances—a father whose love for his daughter forces a social reckoning that will reverberate for years to come.

• Nisha Pahuja is an Emmy-nominated filmmaker based in Toronto and Bombay, whose credits include Diamond Road (2007 Gemini Award for Best Documentary Series) and The World Before Her (2012; Best Documentary, Tribeca; Best Canadian Documentary, Hot Docs; Canada’s Top Ten).

Reviews

“A project like To Kill a Tiger only comes along when filmmakers truly care about their subjects… the best Canadian film of the year.” – Pat Mullen, POV Magazine

“Pahuja’s film is a novelistic study of strength coexisting with self-doubt, of that inspirational byword, ‘perseverance’: a human frailty that endures.” – Brendan Boyle, Cinema Scope

“Told with immense compassion and bravery, To Kill a Tiger is Pahuja’s best film and one of the best documentaries at this year’s festival (TIFF).” – Thom Ernst, Northernstars.ca

– 30 –

Note to media:

To Kill a Tiger deals with highly sensitive subject matter. While Ranjit’s daughter’s identity is carefully revealed within the context of the film, out of caution and respect for her and the family’s privacy, we kindly request that her name or any identifying image not be used in any media coverage. The filmmaker recommends that “Ranjit’s daughter” or the pseudonym “J” be used as alternatives. We thank you for your understanding.

French version here | Version française ici.

Media Relations

  • About the NFB

    Founded in 1939, the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) is a one-of-a-kind producer, co-producer and distributor of distinctive, engaging, relevant and innovative documentary and animated films. As a talent incubator, it is one of the world’s leading creative centres. The NFB has enabled Canadians to tell and hear each other’s stories for over eight decades, and its films are a reliable and accessible educational resource. The NFB is also recognized around the world for its expertise in preservation and conservation, and for its rich and vibrant collection of works, which form a pillar of Canada’s cultural heritage. To date, the NFB has produced more than 14,000 works, 6,500 of which can be streamed free of charge at nfb.ca. The NFB and its productions and co-productions have earned over 7,000 awards, including 11 Oscars and an Honorary Academy Award for overall excellence in cinema.