Financing venture Southern Sitara to back a slate of Australian-Indian films

New financing and production venture Southern Sitara is set to back and co-produce a slate of Australian-Indian features alongside Sydney-based production company Temple.

The entity was announced at Cannes last week by investment and strategy duo Roshni Pandey and Jagdish Sidhu, who manage a portfolio of startups and investments across south-east Asia, London and Australia. It is based on a concept by Temple founder Anupam Sharma, who will be the film face of the company, while the Singapore based-Sidhu will oversee finance and compliance and the Gold Coast-based Pandey will head up the group’s strategy and investor relations.

Southern Sitara, which hopes to leverage the India-Australia co-production treaty, will provide development funding as well as production investment, gap financing and cash flow loans to eligible projects. For production financing, the company aims to work with projects with budgets $5-11 million.

The company has hybrid capital model, combining proprietary capital and co-raising funds on a revolving basis.

“Film investments have long been perceived as high-risk. We’ve been working hard at piloting various business models to flip this narrative, and we’re excited that by building in Australia’s unique eco-system of treaties and incentives we have managed to transform this narrative,” said Pandley.

“We’re proud to step into a venture where strong creative ambition is matched by equally strong financial logic. For me personally it is also an opportunity to tell culturally resonant stories that bridge our different homes and adopted identities. The diverse slate we’re exploring not only reflects market potential and growth, it also captures shared stories told through multiple lenses.”

Sidhu added: “With Australia’s world-class production incentives and o-production treaties, we see a uniquely de-risked path to global film investment – one that satisfies our commitment to compliance and strong ROI.”

Southern Sitara has secured a first look distribution deal with Icon for its English-language films, and Forum Films for Indian-language films.

It will provide development funding for Anupam Kher’s The Return, which will shoot in Australia; high-concept horror film Shadows, incorporating First Nations and Indian horror mythologies, and Temple project The Indian Cowboy, a story inspired by Indian country singer Bobby Cash, who was discovered in Australia.

It will also raise investment funds for a slate that includes Richard Jameson’s Bidjara Kumari, which has had development investment from Screen Australia and Screen Queensland; Sharma’s FRAMED, written and executive produced by Ben Ulm, which is being developed with assistance from Screen Australia, Screen NSW, and SBS, and Dr Sanjaya Senanayake’s Chilli Chicks and Heart Attacks, written by Victoria McIntyre and developed with assistance from Screen Canberra.

Other backers of the company include Jhumka Films’ Drs Pradnya and Tej Dugal, international film and media investor
Jacqui Miller-Charlton (MBE); Sydney-based investor Dr Chandru Tolani, and angel investor Shallu Kundra.

“Australia provides extensive and unprecedented support professionally and financially to screen professionals,” said Sharma.

“Southern Sitara will build on this support and provide filmmakers like me the opportunity to tell our diverse stories as we envisage them. We hope to make a small contribution to authentic diversity and cultural representation in Australian features.”

Janine Pearce of JP Media Law, will act as Southern Sitara’s legal counsel. The Lantern Group will lead communications, with Hema Upadhya handling PR for the Indian market.

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