Film details
- Director
- Raksha Thapa
- Country
- Nepal
- Duration
- 15 min
- Language
- English, Nepali
- Writer
- Raksha Thapa
- Producer
- Safal K.C., Raksha Thapa
- Cast
- Surakshya Panta, Sushil Sitaula
Director’s statement
With Sinner, I wanted to explore the human mind as both a sanctuary and a battlefield. The film delves into the inner workings of guilt, desire, and pride, externalizing the moral and emotional struggles we often try to suppress. By personifying the protagonist’s sins as tangible characters, I sought to create a space where the psychological becomes physical, and where the audience can witness the collision between self-perception and inner truth.
The inspiration comes from Hindu philosophical concepts, particularly the idea that our flaws—Abhimaan (Pride), Irsha (Jealousy), Trishna (Desire), Kama (Lust), and Aakrosh (Anger)—are not abstract, but active forces that shape our lives. By staging the film as a hallucinatory party, I aimed to blur the line between reality and perception, inviting viewers to experience the protagonist’s reckoning intimately and viscerally.
For me, cinema is a tool to confront uncomfortable truths. With this film, I hope the audience will reflect on their own shadows and understand that facing one’s sins is not only terrifying but necessary for self-awareness and transformation.
Synopsis
Sinner, a troubled man, hosts a party where his closest “friends” gather around a dining table. As the night unfolds, their conversations turn accusatory—each one confronting him with unforgivable mistakes from his past. But these companions are not friends at all; they are the living embodiments of his sins, drawn from Hindu scriptures: Abhimaan (Pride), Irsha (Jealousy), Trishna (Desire), Kama (Lust), and Aakrosh (Anger). One by one, the sins expose his guilt, contradictions, and failures, each story clashing with the other. As the voices grow louder and the night spirals into chaos, Sinner’s grip on reality fractures. What begins as a gathering becomes a hallucinatory trial of his own soul, forcing him to face the demons within that he can no longer suppress.
Raksha Thapa
Director
Raksha Thapa is a Nepali filmmaker from Kathmandu with a diploma in filmmaking from Kantipur Film Academy and seven years of experience in the industry. She worked as production manager on Jaat Ko Prashna (dir. Shanta Nepali) and as second assistant director on The Secrets of Radha and Ma (dir. Subarna Thapa). Sinner is her debut as writer-director. Her next film, The Sacred Fire, is in post-production.