Nepali director Abinash Bikram Shah is walking the red carpet at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival with his debut feature ‘A Story of a Bunch of Junkies Living in My Neighbourhood’, selected for the prestigious International Critics’ Week sidebar.
For Shah, the selection is not just a personal milestone but an opportunity to shift how the world sees Nepali cinema – from an exotic curiosity to a universal voice.
The film that got him here
Shah’s film follows a group of young men in a suburban Kathmandu neighbourhood, trapped in cycles of addiction, poverty, and friendship. The title is deliberately literal – what you see is what you get.
“When people hear ‘Nepali film’, they expect mountains, monasteries, and spiritual enlightenment,” Shah told The Hindu in an interview on the Cannes terrace overlooking the Mediterranean.
“I show none of that. My film is set in a dusty, chaotic Kathmandu suburb. It is about people who are not photogenic. But their struggles are universal. That is my goal – to move the audience from ‘them’ (those poor Nepali junkies) to ‘us’ (human beings dealing with pain).”
From Kathmandu to Cannes
Shah did not take the traditional path. He studied film editing in London, worked as a freelancer for years, and made short films that travelled to festivals in Europe and Asia. His short ‘The Flute’ (2022) played at Busan and Clermont-Ferrand, establishing his visual style – long takes, natural light, and non-professional actors.
But a feature was a different beast. He wrote the script over three years, drawing from real people in his own neighbourhood.
“I did not have to research drug addiction from a distance. I lived next to it. These are my neighbours. Some of them are dead now. I made the film because someone had to tell their story before they were completely forgotten.”
The funding struggle
Despite the Cannes selection, Shah insists making the film was brutal. Nepali cinema has no state funding mechanism for independent films. He pieced together the budget from savings, small grants, and a crowdfunding campaign that took 18 months to reach its target.
“There is no magic moment where someone hands you a cheque. I edited the film in my bedroom. My sound designer worked from a borrowed laptop. We did colour correction in a friend’s garage because we could not afford a studio.”
When the film was invited to Critics’ Week, Shah says he cried. “Not because I was happy. Because I realised every single sacrifice had meaning.”
What critics are saying
Early reviews from the Cannes screening have been positive. Screen Daily called it “a gritty, tender portrait of masculinity in crisis” while a Le Monde critic described it as “the Nepali answer to Larry Clark’s ‘Kids’ – but with more heart and less exploitation.”
The film has not yet found a distributor for India, though Shah says talks are underway.
Nepal’s slow cinema awakening
Shah is part of a small but growing wave of independent Nepali filmmakers whose work has begun appearing on the international festival circuit. His contemporary, Min Bahadur Bham, directed ‘Shambhala’ (2024), which premiered in Berlin. Nischal Basnet’s ‘Tattini’ (2025) played at Busan.
“Cinema in Nepal is still dominated by commercial action films and melodramas,” Shah notes. “But there is a new generation that grew up watching international cinema on the internet. We are not replicating Bollywood or Hollywood. We are trying to find our own language.”
What comes after Cannes
Shah is already working on his second feature – a family drama set during the 2015 Nepal earthquake. He plans to shoot next winter.
For now, he is determined to enjoy Cannes, however surreal it feels.
“I walked up these steps yesterday and saw photographers screaming at famous actors. For a second, I thought, ‘What am I doing here?’ Then I remembered my neighbour, who died of an overdose in 2022. I am here because of him. I am here because no one else would tell his story.”
The final goal
When asked what success would look like for him after Cannes, Shah does not mention awards or distribution deals.
“If one person watches my film and says, ‘I have never been to Nepal, but I recognise these people,’ that is enough. That is moving from ‘them’ to ‘us’. That is cinema doing its job.”
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Improving efficiency of fertilizer use in India
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Slug: improving-fertilizer-efficiency-india-balanced-nutrient-management-pm-pranam
Meta Description: India targets improved fertilizer efficiency with NUE at 30-45% for nitrogen. Government initiatives like PM-PRANAM, nano fertilizers, and soil health cards aim to combat imbalanced use and restore soil health.
Tags: Fertilizer efficiency, NUE India, PM-PRANAM, nano fertilizers, soil health card, balanced fertilization, sustainable agriculture, ICAR
Improving efficiency of fertilizer use in India
New Delhi, May 21, 2026 – India, the world’s second-largest consumer of fertilizers, faces a critical challenge: a significant portion of the nutrients applied to crops is never absorbed, leading to massive financial losses, environmental damage, and deteriorating soil health. However, a combination of government incentives and precision technologies is beginning to change this narrative.
The current efficiency crisis
Current estimates place India’s Nutrient Use Efficiency (NUE) at 30–45% for nitrogen, 15–25% for phosphorus, and 50–60% for potassium . This means that for every bag of urea applied, over half can be lost to the environment through volatilization, leaching, or runoff.
This inefficiency carries a heavy cost. The average fertilizer-to-grain response ratio has declined significantly, with recent studies showing a range of 9.55 to 11.05 kg of grain per kg of fertilizer applied . To maintain productivity, farmers are forced to apply ever-increasing amounts, creating a cycle of dependency and soil degradation.
ICAR studies reveal that continuous nitrogen-only application leads to declining yields and deterioration of soil properties over time, whereas balanced nutrient management can improve yields by 20–30% over nitrogen-only use .
The path to balance
Scientists advocate for the 4R Nutrient Stewardship principle—applying the Right source at the Right rate, Right time, and Right place . The government has launched several major initiatives to drive adoption of balanced fertilization.
The PM-PRANAM scheme provides a unique grant mechanism to incentivize States and Union Territories to reduce chemical fertilizer consumption. States that cut usage compared to their previous three-year average receive incentives equivalent to 50% of the fertilizer subsidy saved . While no incentives have been disbursed yet, 14 states recorded a reduction of 15.14 lakh metric tonnes in chemical fertilizer consumption during FY 2023–24 .
The Soil Health Card (SHC) Scheme provides farmers with plot-wise diagnostic reports assessing soil health across 12 key parameters, including macronutrients (N, P, K, S), micronutrients (Zn, Fe, Cu, Mn, B), and soil properties (pH, EC, OC) . Over 25.55 crore SHCs have been distributed, along with more than 93,000 farmer training programs .
Technology in the field
Digital tools are revolutionizing nutrient management at the farm level. The Nutrient Manager for Rice (NMR) , a web-based decision support tool, calculates field-specific fertilizer rates based on target yield, soil fertility, and crop establishment method. On-farm trials in Tamil Nadu’s Cauvery Delta showed that NMR reduced fertilizer N and P rates and lowered total fertilizer cost compared to blanket recommendations, while maintaining comparable yields .
Similarly, the Rice Crop Manager (RCM) in Odisha increased grain yields by 17–19% compared to traditional farmer practices while significantly improving nitrogen and potassium use efficiency. Importantly, RCM treatments demonstrated reduced greenhouse gas emissions compared to farmer practices .
Advanced solutions
Nano fertilizers are emerging as a game-changing technology. IFFCO has conducted nearly 3,000 Nano DAP and 448 Nano Urea field trials across all 15 agro-climatic zones of the country . These formulations allow nutrients to be absorbed more efficiently by crops, with minimal waste. The government has launched a “Maha Abhiyan” to promote adoption of nano fertilizers nationwide.
Conservation Agriculture practices combined with Precision Nutrient Management have also shown remarkable results. Permanent raised beds with residue retention, paired with nutrient expert and GreenSeeker technologies, have enhanced wheat productivity by 25.97% in the Indo-Gangetic Plains while significantly improving energy efficiency and profitability .
The environmental imperative
The stakes extend beyond economics. A substantial portion of applied fertilizers is lost through leaching, volatilization, and runoff . These losses contaminate groundwater with nitrates, contribute to greenhouse gas emissions, and create oceanic dead zones. The ICAR has emphasized that balanced and integrated nutrient application is essential not only for sustaining soil fertility but also for ensuring environmental sustainability .
For India to achieve its sustainable agriculture goals, improving fertilizer efficiency is not optional—it is imperative. With initiatives like PM-PRANAM incentivizing states to cut chemical fertilizer use and technologies enabling precision application, the path to efficiency is clearer than ever before.
