Indian indie filmmaker Junaid Alvi’s calendar is packed with upcoming directorial projects. On his way to expanding his journey as an auteur, the West Bengal-based director has added another golden star to his portfolio. Alvi is set to unfold 10 hair-raising tales through his horror anthology film, Terror Tales, which is now in production. Joining him on this adventure, Ken Ochiai, director of the 2016 Vietnamese action comedy blockbusters Saigon Bodyguards and Daddy Issues, has taken on the inevitable responsibilities as the film’s producer.
Ochiai’s American production company, Photosynth Entertainment, is backing this ambitious project. His LinkedIn profile reveals that he “made his first film at the age of 12. Soon after graduating from high school, he left his hometown of Tokyo, Japan to pursue his dream of becoming a film director in the United States.” Furthermore, “Ochiai is now working as a professional writer/director in Los Angeles and has several projects in development in Japan and the U.S.”
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About Junaid Alvi’s latest directorial film Terror Tales
Combining 10 hair-raising stories, Alavi’s anthology film enhances his existing filmography with a distinctive narrative tone. It aims to combine horror themes with social and psychological issues. This has been a hallmark of the indie filmmaker’s projects so far, including his horror short Hunger, which premiered at Italy’s Festival del Cinema di Cefalu in 2023.
Terror Tales welcomes a stellar cast of popular actors from West Bengal, India, including Manasi Sinha and Maidaan star Aryan Bhowmick. Kalyan Goswami, Anirban Guha and Subinoy Ganguly will also play pivotal roles in the film.
How did Junayed Alavi and Ken Ochiai come together for this project?
“I have known Kane for years. We met on a podcast episode of my own live show during the lockdown,” the Terror Tales director exclusively told Hindustan Times.com.
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He said, “At that time, I was making many short films. He was aware of my work. Since then, we have been planning to work together. A few weeks ago, I gave him the idea of ​​Terror Tales.”
Alavi claimed that Ochiai immediately responded enthusiastically to the pitch, showering love on the vision and expressing his heartfelt desire to make it happen.
As far as the shooting of the film is concerned, “We are shooting the film in various locations in West Bengal, India. Ken always wanted to produce an Indian film and I was keen too. We have already shot several portions and my experience has been amazing. As a producer, Ken has given me ultimate creative freedom,” Alvi told us.
Junaid Alvi is also preparing for the theatrical premiere of his debut feature film, Sapiens. Expected to release around Christmas 2024 or Summer 2025, according to the director’s previous revelations, the film will be available in Bengali, Hindi and English. Marvel’s Moon Knight producer Peter Cameron is co-producing the film, which stars Ms. Marvel actor Asfandyar Khan as the narrator of the apocalyptic story.
