‘Mother of Many Hands’: Manish Chaubey’s Documentary Wins at Brahmapur Film Festival and Earns Major Festival Selections

From a decade in corporate job to independent filmmaking, Manish Chaubey’s socially conscious documentary brings an overlooked story of motherhood, migration and dignity to the screen

Filmmaker Manish Chaubey turns his camera towards a story that deserves attention. His documentary, Mother of Many Hands, follows an educated migrant mother in Hyderabad whose daily efforts to provide for her children reveal a powerful story of resilience, sacrifice and dignity. Produced by Roohdaar Films & Entertainment, the film follows a woman who migrates from Maharashtra to Hyderabad in search of a better future. Faced with financial difficulties and family responsibilities, she takes up domestic work, cleaning homes to sustain her family. She faces these challenges while holding on to her dignity. The title carries a deeper meaning. A mother’s hands earn, cook, clean, nurture, comfort and protect. Through one woman’s experience, the documentary draws attention to countless mothers whose contributions remain largely invisible.

A story beyond conventional narratives

The documentary uses an observational approach, allowing everyday life to unfold naturally. The camera follows her work, family life and efforts to build a future in an unfamiliar city. Beyond poverty and domestic work, the film raises questions about dignity of labour, women’s choices, migration and the informal economy. It observes the protagonist’s agency and determination as she tries to build stability in an expanding city. Manish believes compelling cinema does not always require extraordinary circumstances, powerful stories can unfold quietly in ordinary homes. Its focus is personal rather than statistical. The film does not attempt to speak for every domestic worker or reduce a complex life to a single message. Instead, it stays close to one family’s routines and choices, inviting viewers to consider the distance between the work that keeps households running and the recognition given to the people who do it. This intimacy gives the documentary its emotional centre.

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From software engineering to filmmaking

Chaubey’s journey into cinema is itself a story of professional reinvention. Originally from Uttarakhand and raised in Delhi, he graduated from Delhi University and began his career in the information technology industry. After approximately a decade in the corporate world, his longstanding interest in theatre and cinema led him to leave that career and move to Mumbai. At university, he served as president of his college theatre society. In Mumbai, he trained in filmmaking and direction, worked as an assistant director, and later joined the ABP Group. He later expanded into entertainment public relations, artist management and film production. In 2024, he co-founded Roohdaar Films & Entertainment with Reeshma Radhakrrishnan, working across films, documentaries and entertainment services.

Festival recognition and growing momentum

The documentary’s festival journey gathered momentum in 2026. It won in the Documentary Section at the Brahmapur International Film Festival 2026, an important milestone for the independent production. The film also received official selections at the Jagran Film Festival 2026 and the Mumba International Film Festival 2026, a prominent platform dedicated to documentary, short and animation cinema. It was additionally selected for the 7th Mumbai Indiefilm Festival 2026, extending its presence within India’s independent filmmaking community. These selections introduce the film to wider audiences and extend the conversation around migrant women and domestic workers. Several more festival submissions and selection opportunities are in the pipeline. The filmmaker and production team are hopeful of further selections and, potentially, additional awards as the film continues its journey.

Cinema that gives a voice to the unseen

For Manish, the film reflects his commitment to intimate, socially relevant cinema. Domestic workers perform essential tasks in homes every day, yet their ambitions and struggles often remain unseen. By placing one woman at the centre, Chaubey asks audiences to recognise the person behind the work. In an industry often driven by spectacle, Mother of Many Hands chooses observation over exaggeration and humanity over glamour. Its festival journey also demonstrates the possibilities available to independent filmmakers who pursue stories that might otherwise remain unheard. Sometimes, the most compelling cinematic stories are not about people who change the world. They are about people who quietly hold their own worlds together.