Sid Katragadda is an emerging, award-winning screenwriter and filmmaker. His film B.L.I.N.D was a semifinalist at the Rhode Island Film Festival, one of the top 10 film festivals in the US.  It has been nominated for awards in various film festivals worldwide.  Watch the film on IMDB.

His short film, ‘Varanasi’ won Best Foreign film at the Atlantic City Film Festival.

His screenplays have been  finalists  in various Hollywood screenplay contests, including Page, Screencraft and Nicholls. 

Awards/Placements:

- Semifinalist, Flickers Rhode Island Intl. Film Festival,

- Grand Prix, Best Documentary (Silk Road), Cannes IIFF  2020

- Best Documentary, Zero Degree Film Festival  2020

- Finalist , Boston International Indian Film Festival 2020

- Finalist, Bengaluru Shorts Intl. Film Festival,

- Special Mention, 11th DadaSaheb Phalke Film Festival,

- Outstanding Achievement Award, Tagore International Film Festival

Official Selection:

- Kolkatta Short Intl Film Festival 

- Jaipur Intl. Film Festival -  16IFF

When a man travels to Varanasi to immerse his father's ashes in the River Ganga, he realizes that this is not just a city but the meeting point of realms

Director Statement:

People come to Varanasi seeking Moksha– a release from the cycles of life and rebirth, but do they really get it? That's the central query of this film. I've always been enamored by the City of Lights. Some say it's the oldest city on the planet. The only city not resting on Earth, but on the tip of Shiva's Trishul. A city whose central theme is death and cremation. As a filmmaker, all these thought-provoking themes piqued my interest enough to make a film about the city. We shot the film during the four day Ganga Mahotsav (Ganges Festival), when thousands of pilgrims converged on the city. What we witnessed just blew our minds. I can only say that you have to be there to experience it, to feel it in your skin, in your soul. It felt like we were in another world, another planet. But I tried my best to capture it for posterity, and I hope this film becomes a time capsule for one of the greatest cities and cultures on the planet!

Reviews:

"Artistic short film Varanasi has a sensitive plot which Siddharth handled deftly with utmost precision and judicious use of the human and technical resources so as to evoke a deep emotional response from the audience. The film is not only appealing emotionally but also intriguing visually & aurally. Some time ago I watched  his film B.L.I.N.D, the documentary dealing with subject on the upliftment of blind people and creating universal awareness there of. I feel his films have humanistic approach dealing with the intrinsic observation of human behaviour and relationships. His style of making films reminds me of Shyam Benegal. The finishing part of the film is also fabulous. On the whole, I can state that "Varanasi" exudes intellectualism and Sid is a multi-faceted genius."

"Very well made movie. I loved the direction and the screenplay more than anything else. Actors did a better job than the current Telugu film actors. Only thing I am disappointed a little bit is the ending. As a writer I was really guessing the same easy ending, but expecting it would be a challenging surprise or at least different. Not a minus though, looking at all other great values in the movie. Well done and congratulations  on a movie well done."