Nagaland-set debut Angh wins top Platform prize at Toronto
Theja Rio's debut feature Angh has won the top prize in the Platform competition at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Toronto named Rio's film as its 2026 Platform winner in the awards announcement on 20 September, according to TIFF. Platform is Toronto's competitive section for films driven by a strong directorial voice. Twelve titles competed for this year's award.
Angh expands on Rio's 2021 short film, according to Variety. It is set in the early 1960s in a deserted village in Nagaland, an eastern Indian state on the Burmese border. The story follows the chief of a waning tribe as an American missionary arrives.
Toronto describes the choice at the heart of the film in plain terms: a chief must choose between his family and a transforming world embodied by an incoming American. That clash between old authority and new arrival drives the plot.
Anghlong Konyak plays Anghba, the old chief. Sobino Rengma plays Amao, his son. Douglas Henshall plays the American preacher, according to Variety. The cast is mostly made up of tribal non-actors. Adam Pietkiewicz served as cinematographer.
Rio is an Indigenous Naga filmmaker from Nagaland, India. He graduated from the United Kingdom's National Film and Television School. TIFF lists Angh as an Indian film directed by Rio.
Angh entered Toronto as the sole Indian film in the 2026 Platform line-up, according to Hollywood Reporter India. It competed alongside titles including Amanda Kernell's Brace Your Heart, Ferit Karahan's Djinn Wedding and Irene Dionisio's Idda. The jury was led by president Pablo Trapero, with Amma Asante, Sylvia Chang, Luc Dery and Albert Lee selecting the winner.
Elsewhere at the festival, La Bola Negra took the Audience Award, according to The Hollywood Reporter. That prize is often watched closely because it is voted by festivalgoers rather than a jury.
What makes this stand out for general audiences is access. Few films from Nagaland reach a major international competition. For viewers, this win places a story told in a rarely seen setting and largely with first-time performers on Toronto's main awards list.
The festival has been working to bring in a younger audience primarily interested in works outside the mainstream, according to Reuters. A debut winner from outside the usual production centres fits that push.
