This post was written by Michelle Gallina and originally appeared on the Adobe blog on January 27, 2025.
This debut feature from writer and director Rohan Parashuram Kanawade offers a personal and original depiction of queer life among the rural and lower castes of India, taking audiences on a journey with Anand, a 30-something city dweller compelled to spend a 10-day mourning period for his father in the countryside. After tenderly bonding with a local farmer, Anand must decide the fate of his relationship born under duress when the mourning period ends.
Athaley relied on Premiere Pro’s intuitive and customizable tools to edit this touching narrative, leveraging its powerful masking tools to combine elements from different takes into a single shot and clean up dialogue with Enhance Speech. Athaley says Premiere Pro’s integration with other tools in Adobe’s Creative Suite was key: “We used Photoshop and After Effects to create draft graphics, helping us determine the usability of certain takes and mask elements in some shots.”
Read on for an inside look at editing Sabar Bonda, premiering at Sundance on January 26th.
How did you first get involved with this project?
I was in the middle of working on the edit of a narrative series when I got a call from Rohan, the film’s director. We instantly connected over the storyline. Having lost my father a few years earlier, I deeply resonated with the protagonist’s journey. After reading the full screenplay and the director’s notes on the treatment, I was also drawn to the film’s unique form and visual language.
Where were you when you found out you got into Sundance? How did you feel?
I was making some edit changes to our film after a detailed discussion earlier with the director. He called me to give this news and I was elated and relieved in some sense! Sundance feels like the perfect home for this film and its audience. I’ve always admired the quality of narratives showcased at Sundance and it’s incredibly humbling to be part of such a prestigious festival.
How do you begin a project/set up your workspace?
I keep the setup as simple and minimalist as possible. At the start, I discuss the workflow with my team—my associate Smaran, in this case—so everyone knows where to find things. We begin by cloning the hard drives and maintaining a consistent file structure throughout the edit. My team sets up the project, syncs sound, creates multicam sequences or subclips for every take, and labels them with colors based on the director’s notes. Once everything is organized, I step in to watch the rushes, make my selects, and build the lineup. For this film, Smaran would line up some scenes for me, and then I focused on watching the rushes and refining those scenes. We did this for some scenes that were more open to interpretation.
Tell us about a favorite scene or moment from this project and why it stands out to you.
One of my favorite scenes in the film is when Anand, the protagonist, is traveling to the city with his cousin, who doesn’t know Anand is queer. The cousin innocently asks about Anand’s “girlfriend,” a fictional story Anand’s parents invented to explain his lack of interest in marriage. Anand fabricates further, saying she got married and wanted to stay in touch, but he refused. The cousin then jokes about having an affair and even offers to take Anand to a doctor to treat “secret sexual disorders.” All of this unfolds as Anand texts Balya, someone he’s beginning to fall for. This scene stands out to me for its sharp observation, subtle humor, and poignant commentary on the societal pressures and complexities of concealing queerness.
What were some specific post-production challenges you faced that were unique to your project? How did you go about solving them?
We completed shooting in mid-January, and with the Berlinale EFM approaching quickly, the film’s producer, Neeraj, wanted to take an impactful 8-minute mood reel. We worked with urgency to review the rushes, edit the film, and craft the reel, which helped us garner a lot of interest in Berlin. During the shoot, the production team provided proxy files, enabling us to preview the footage and start building scenes simultaneously. Adobe’s versatile suite was instrumental in streamlining this process.
The film features many long takes, often with multiple characters in the frame or involving intricate choreography, which made it challenging to get everything right, especially in unpredictable weather conditions. In such cases, we relied on Premiere Pro’s powerful masking tools to combine elements from different takes into a single shot. For instance, in one scene, we masked a cat from another take into the final shot because the performance was perfect, but the chosen take lacked the cat. In another, we used masking to extend the stay on one character while the other observed them intently. These tools provided remarkable flexibility to refine the visuals and achieve the desired emotional impact.
What Adobe tools did you use on this project and why did you originally choose them?
We kept the setup simple and edited the film using Premiere Pro. We also used Media Encoder for transcoding and creating proxies. I’ve been using Premiere Pro for years and find it very intuitive and user-friendly. There is an active online community that gives feedback to Adobe resulting in frequent improvements and updates, which is a big plus. I also value the sound tools in Premiere Pro, especially the Enhance Speech feature which cleans the dialogue and gives us space to imagine the film’s sound design during editing. The integration within Adobe Creative Cloud was a bonus—we used Photoshop and After Effects to create draft graphics, helping us determine the usability of certain takes and mask elements in some shots.
We discovered Frame.io a little late in the process. We used Frame.io to securely send screeners to our producers and persons giving us feedback who were in various countries to watch and give feedback.
If you could share one tip about Premiere Pro, what would it be?
Premiere Pro is highly customizable, allowing you to tailor the workflow to your needs and create custom workspaces. You also can open multiple sequences simultaneously, making sorting and selecting shots much easier. I keep my ‘Selects’ sequence open while docking other sequences above, allowing me to lift shots seamlessly—this keeps the process smooth and organic.
If the film’s language is supported by Speech to Text in Premiere Pro, I highly recommend transcribing all the rushes. It’s incredibly helpful for quickly searching for specific dialogues or keywords!
Who is your creative inspiration and why?
I’m inspired by artists with truly distinct styles that they never shy away from. Editors like Sally Menke, Thelma Schoonmaker, and Walter Murch have created work that feels like a masterclass in itself. Sally Menke’s playful style, especially in films like “Kill Bill” and “Pulp Fiction,” has been a huge inspiration—her ability to shape the flow of energy is brilliant. I’m also deeply influenced by Tim Burton’s interpretation of magic realism, particularly in underrated gems like “Big Fish” and “Ed Wood.”
What’s something tough you’ve had to face in your career, and how did you overcome it? What advice do you have for aspiring filmmakers or content creators?
After graduating from film school, I began working as an editor on a commissioned short documentary that tackled a very sensitive subject. At the time, I approached it with a theoretical understanding of activism, but I was eventually asked to leave the project as the edit was very didactic. It was a shocking experience for me, and I decided never to work on documentaries again. However, over time, I learned how to craft layered stories and eventually attempted another documentary film, which I thoroughly enjoyed working on. Since then, I’ve edited many documentaries, and it has become my favorite form of storytelling.
My advice to aspiring filmmakers is simple: filmmaking is a journey of both successes and failures. When you fail, take the time to regroup, reflect, and keep moving forward.
What’s your favorite thing about your workspace and why?
I have a two-monitor setup with a Mac Studio, a set of studio monitors, and a lot of trinkets sprinkled around from various films. The most essential element is my footrest, which keeps my feet cozy during long edits.
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This article comes from No Film School and can be read on the original site.
