Zeenat and the Men Who Give Her Pause is an intimate film-in-the-making about late blooming, desire, and the hidden interior lives of women.
The story is about a menopausal woman in a long-term dormant marriage who experiences an unexpected emotional and sensual awakening through fleeting encounters with a younger colleague in an office elevator. The film explores desire, aging, invisibility, motherhood, marriage, loneliness, and self-reclamation with warmth, restraint, humor, and emotional honesty.
Written & to-be-directed by award-winning filmmaker Richa Rudola (Cow Heavy And Floral), and with a highly accomplished core producing team (Pulkit Datta, Lela Meadow-Conner, and Prerana Thakurdesai), it is a short film designed to realize full impact opportunities. The project has already received early recognition from programs including:
2026 BlueCat Screenplay Competition – Finalist 2026 Flatiron Film Fund – Finalist 2026 CASCADIA International Women’s Film Festival – Semi-Finalist 2025 Female Eye Film Festival Pitch Competition – Finalist
Your tax-deductible contribution will directly support:
cast and crew compensation
production design and locations
cinematography and post-production
music and sound
festival submissions and outreach
impact strategy to inform conversation-based programming for community screenings
We are also currently exploring partnerships and executive producing opportunities with individuals, organizations, and brands aligned with the film’s themes and impact mission.
Thank you for believing in bold independent storytelling and helping bring Zeenat’s journey to life.
Please contact us for ACH donation information or to learn more about partnership opportunities.
Zeenat is a fiscally sponsored project of Entertainment 2 Affect Change (EIN: 46-2660255).