'In Which Annie...': SRK-Arundhati Roy's film to screen at Berlinale
What's the story
Arundhati Roy's cult classic, In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones, will be screened at the 2026 Berlin Film Festival. The film, which was released in 1989 and is known for its depiction of student life and aspirations, will be showcased in a 4K restored version as part of the Berlinale Classics segment. The screenplay was written by Roy, and she also acted in it.
Film details
'In Which Annie...' features SRK and Manoj Bajpayee
The film, which starred a young Shah Rukh Khan and Manoj Bajpayee, was directed by Roy's then-husband Pradip Krishen. Set in a Delhi architecture school in the mid-1970s, it is a quirky campus comedy that was originally made for Doordarshan but later gained cult status among cinephiles. The story follows Anand Grover, nicknamed Annie by his friends, who lands himself in trouble for mocking principal YD Billimoria aka Yamdoot.
Inspiration
Roy's experiences inspired 'In Which Annie...'
Roy's own experiences at the prestigious School of Planning and Architecture in Delhi partly inspired the film. It was her first screenplay, and she also collaborated with Krishen on his debut film, the 1985 colonial-period drama Massey Sahib. They later worked together on Electric Moon in 1992, where Roy again wrote the screenplay, and Krishen directed it.
Cast
'In Which Annie...' features Arjun Raina and Roshan Seth
Apart from Roy, In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones also starred Arjun Raina and Roshan Seth in lead roles. The cast also includes Rituraj Singh, Himani Shivpuri, and Raghubir Yadav. Khan and Bajpayee, who were struggling in the Delhi theater circuit at that time, had small yet significant roles. The film won two National Awards for best screenplay (Roy) and best feature film in English.
Restoration details
Krishen expressed delight over film's restoration and screening
Krishen expressed his excitement about the film's world premiere at the Berlin Film Festival. "When we made In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones almost four decades ago, it was unique in the sense that no one was making films about people like us," he said. The restoration was done by the Film Heritage Foundation at L'Immagine Ritrovata's laboratory in association with the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC), National Film Archive of India (NFAI), and Krishen.
Festival screening
'In Which Annie...' will be screened at Berlinale Classics
The film will be a part of the Berlinale Classics 2026, which is said to be the most ambitious line-up since its inception. The section features works from the silent era to the mid-1990s. Recently, in her memoir Mother Mary Comes To Me, Roy had written about how the film was greenlit by Doordarshan and had its first screening at Max Mueller Bhavan.