Mumbai witnessed the celebration of BAFTA-nominated filmmaker Gurinder Chadha’s latest musical feature film ‘Christmas Karma’ backed by Civic Studios and distributed by PVR INOX Pictures.

The red carpet came alive with the presence of leading celebrities, filmmakers including Karan Johar, Manish Malhotra, Anu Malik, Rasika Dugal, Sargun Mehta, Ravi Dubey, & and several other notable personalities from the entertainment fraternity.

Chief Guest Amruta Fadnavis attended the special screening, reflecting her support for inclusive and social initiatives. Held in association with Sense International India, a national NGO that supports children and adults with deafblindness, the screening also welcomed a young person with deafblindness accompanied by an interpreter, who engaged with the film and expressed his love for it.

Following the premiere, audiences enjoyed an insightful Q&A session hosted by Karan Johar, celebrating the film’s music, message, performances, and multicultural storytelling.

During the conversation, he reflected on the director’s impactful body of work and shared his admiration, saying, “Gurinder has gone from strength to strength, consistently pushing boundaries and opening doors for our culture in the West. She has walked a fine line, and done it so beautifully and so effectively. And today, with the release of this film that moved all of us, I’m reminded again of the emotional power of her storytelling. I remember watching this film and being so moved by it. The Christmas drama has truly been great for everyone in the drama cycle, and congratulations—it’s absolutely stunning.”

Speaking about the struggles of financing a film in the UK as an Indian female director, Gurinder Chadha spoke about her excitement of the film premiering here and the support from the Indian studio Civic Studios who backed the film along with other Indian-origin financiers, saying that “the film has been able to exist because of Indian support”, to which Karan Johar commented “much like the film – at its heart its Indian, and so is its funding.”

Commenting on the need to back films by women, Anushka Shah, CEO/Founder of Civic Studios, spoke about how Bend It Like Beckham had been such a powerful influence on her that “It’s karma that after everything Gurinder has given us, backing this movie has been a chance to pay that gratitude back”.

Adding to the evening’s celebration of Punjabi pride and the film’s cultural resonance, Sargun Mehta shared her heartfelt admiration for Gurinder Chadha, saying, “I’m just going to say that, Punjabian ni Shaan Wakri and Gurinder Chadha is the shaan of the entire Punjab.”

Uttam Kumar, CEO of Sense International India, said, “The film’s multicultural spirit and its celebration of diverse backgrounds reflect our belief that every life—regardless of origin or ability—deserves dignity and a rightful place in society. It reminds us that empathy, connection, and understanding are the true festive gifts. For us at Sense International India, it also highlights the importance of recognizing deafblindness and disability, ensuring that every individual is seen, heard, and included,”

Christmas Karma is a strikingly original contemporary musical inspired by Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, blending festive magic with a fresh, modern perspective and a vibrant South Asian lens.

The film starring Kunal Nayyar (Big Bang Theory) is written and directed by BAFTA-nominated Gurinder Chadha (Bend It Like Beckham, Blinded by the Light) with music by Gary Barlow, Shaznay Lewis, and Nitin Sawhney. The film is a classic British story told through the lens of a South Asian director, with a South Asian lead actor and backed by South Asian financing, the film reflects the growing global presence of Indian producers and storytellers.

Leading the cast is Kunal Nayyar (The Big Bang Theory) as Scrooge, alongside a stellar ensemble including Eva Longoria (Desperate Housewives), Boy George, Billy Porter (Pose), Hugh Bonneville (Downton Abbey), Leo Suter, Charithra Chandran (Bridgerton), Pixie Lott, Danny Dyer, Bilal Hasna, Allan Corduner, Tracy-Ann Oberman, Rufus Jones, Eve, and Nitin Ganatra.

Backed by Civic Studios, the project is produced by Gurinder Chadha, Celine Rattray, Trudie Styler, and Amory Leader, with Zygi Kamasa, Anushka Shah, Paul Mayeda Berges, Sophia Pedlow, Sunil Sheth, and Hannah Leader serving as Executive Producers.

Christmas Karma is releasing in cinema across India on 12th December 2025.

LOGLINE
Take Charles Dickens’ classic A Christmas Carol, add a who’s who of contemporary international musical and acting talent, sprinkle in themes of poverty, racism and transformation and you have a modern, affectionate film set in a vibrant, diverse London.

ABOUT CIVIC STUDIOS

Civic Studios is a global media company with a vision of creating entertainment to engage and empower. Incubated at the MIT Media Lab, USA, the studio develops, produces and finances feature films, shows and short digital content with a distribution reach across digital platforms, theaters and streamers.

The studio’s current projects include ‘Christmas Karma’ (Christmas musical directed by Gurinder Chadha starring Kunal Nayyar with Eva Longoria and Hugh Bonneville), ‘In The Shadows’ (biopic of boxing champion Ramla Ali, directed by Emmy and trip BAFTA-winning Anthony Wonke, starring BAFTA-winning Jasmine Jobson), ‘Family Aaj Kal’ (comedy drama show streaming on SonyLiv; ranked in top 10 Indian streaming shows in release week), ‘Schirkoa: In Lies We Trust’ (Indo-French-German animation feature film; world premiere at International Film Festival of Rotterdam 2024; NETPAC award winner for Best Asian Film, voiceover artists include Karan Johar, Shekhar Kapur, Anurag Kashyap), ‘Little Thomas’ (feature film starring Rasika Dugal and Gulshan Devaiah), Daughter of Eden (an Arabic-English feature film by writer-director Berlinale talent Fateme Ahmadi, produced by Shudder Films of Kneecap, developed with BFI and BBC Film), Ikhatte (starring Barun Sobti) amidst many others. Past releases also include ‘Santosh’ (shortlisted as UK’s official entry for the Oscars 2025, writer-director Sandhya Suri nominated for Outstanding Debut award at BAFTA 2025), ‘Vakeel Babu ’ starring Abhishek Banerjee (streaming on Amazon) and ‘Ye Saali Naukri’ (MXPlayer).

The studio has a growing slate of Climate Change Media across formats of children’s content via schools and edtech platforms, rural and community radio, social media for youth action, and grant- based incentives for climate messaging in films, television, and digital content, all with a goal of providing hopeful and action oriented climate messaging.

The studio also runs a successful pop culture and impact brand on Instagram, whose content this book is based on. Civic Studios is a women-led production house with a 70% female team with offices in Mumbai & London.

ABOUT SENSE INDIA INTERNATIONAL

Sense International India: Transforming Lives of 82,000+ individuals with deafblindness

In India, 500,000 people live with deafblindness—unable to see, hear or communicate even their most basic needs. Isolation, neglect and a lack of opportunities define their lives.

Sense India is changing that.

At Sense International India, also known as Sense India, we are committed to ensuring that every child and adult with deafblindness can lead a life of dignity and independence. Since 1997, we have been the only national organisation enabling children and adults with deafblindness through early intervention, individualized education and livelihood opportunities. Starting with just 23 children, our work has now impacted over 82,000+ individuals, enabling them to break free from isolation and lead fulfilling lives as contributing members of society.

Working in partnership with 63 organisations across 24 states, Sense India has been instrumental in driving systemic change, including the inclusion of deafblindness in the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016.