Kai Cech Cast as Lead Voice in Himalayan Animated Feature Lost in Mandala

Kai Cech has been cast as the lead voice in Lost in Mandala, a new animated feature set in the Himalayas, according to Variety, which reported the casting on 13 November 2026.

Cech will voice Shanti, a lonely 12-year-old who grew up in an isolated monastery in the mountains. Voice acting means the actor records dialogue and sings, while an animated character's drawn or computer-generated body is created separately by the animation team.

The film is the first animated feature from Incessant Rain Studios, a studio making its debut in feature animation. Kiran Bhakta Joshi created the project and will direct it. Joshi previously worked as a visual effects supervisor at Disney, the person who oversees the digital effects on a film's shots and makes sure they fit the story.

The screenplay is by Zack Stentz and Christopher Jenkins. Richard Chavez is production designer, the artist who sets the look of the film's worlds, colours and locations before animation begins. Joshi, Stentz, Jenkins and Nakim Uddin are executive producers, the people who help secure money and partners for a project. Deepa Chipalu Joshi is the producer. NIBL Equity Partners is listed as a production partner.

At the time of the report, Lost in Mandala was in pre-production, the stage where the story, designs and early drawings are settled before the main animation work starts. Animated features often take several years from this point to reach cinemas, so no release date has been set.

Cech is no stranger to family audiences. Last year, no, earlier this decade, she starred opposite Jack Black in Dear Santa. Her first lead film role came in 2022, when she played Gwynn Tan in American Girl: Corinne Tan.

For animation fans, the casting gives the project its first public face. The lead voice shapes how a character sounds long before audiences see her move on screen, and Shanti's story of a girl raised apart from the world is now set with a young performer at its centre.