Bangladeshi filmmaker Mejbaur Rahman Sumon’s latest feature film “Roid” has received a major international boost, with Widishaa Originals, the production house led by International Emmy Award-winning producer Apoorva Bakshi of “Delhi Crime” fame, joining the project as executive producer. The development was announced while the film is competing in the Tiger Competition section at the ongoing International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR).
“Roid” marks Sumon’s second feature film following the critically and commercially successful “Hawa” (2022). Upon its release, “Hawa” became the first Bangladeshi film to enter the US box office and was later selected as Bangladesh’s official submission to the Academy Awards.
Set in a rural landscape of Bangladesh, “Roid” explores emotional intimacy, desire and the complexity of relationships through the lives of a couple living in near isolation. The narrative follows a shy man who repeatedly attempts to abandon his restless wife in unfamiliar places, only for her to return each time—an unsettling cycle that probes the nature of attachment and human bonds.
Speaking to Variety, Apoorva Bakshi described “Roid” as “powerful, mythic and deeply human,” adding that the film presents emotion as a natural force. “The philosophical courage of the film—suggesting that life itself longs for life—is rare and deeply moving,” he said.
Sumon told Variety that the film was inspired by a real-life story shared by his mother. He recalled a couple who once worked at his grandfather’s home, where the husband repeatedly left his wife, only for her to return each time. “That repetition gave me a sense of a primal bond—something beyond logic, something deeply human,” he said.
The film is co-produced by Mushfiqur Rahman, Tanvir Ahmed, Shimul Chandra Biswas, Tanvir Hossain, and Sumon himself. Mushfiqur Rahman described Sumon as a visionary filmmaker, noting that the journey from “Hawa” to “Roid” reflects a distinct and evolving cinematic vision.
The cast of “Roid” includes Mostafizur Noor Imran, Nazifa Tushi, and Gazi Rakayet, with cinematography by Zahir Mousavi. The project was also selected for the Co-Production Market at Film Bazaar India in 2024, further cementing its international trajectory.
