A personal road documentary by Dr Vikrant Kishore
examines caste, migration, equality and belonging in contemporary Australia
Resisting Casteism in Australia, a new documentary by filmmaker, journalist and academic Dr Vikrant Kishore, will screen at the Melbourne Documentary Film Festival on Sunday 19 July 2026, at 12:15 pm at Cinema Nova, Melbourne.
A special private screening will also be organised for community members in Sydney on Saturday 18 July 2026, at 3:00 pm at The Regency, 18 George Young Street, Auburn.
The 61-minute documentary follows Dr Kishore on a 3,500-kilometre journey through Melbourne, Sydney, Newcastle and Coffs Harbour as he speaks with academics, community leaders, advocates, medical professionals and Indian-Australian contributors about caste, migration, equality and belonging.
The film arrives at a time when caste is becoming an important public conversation in Australia.
Once treated largely as an issue belonging elsewhere, caste is now being discussed through community advocacy, media reporting, human rights work, local government debate and policy conversations.
These discussions have raised questions about how caste-based discrimination may appear in Australian social life, including through surnames, marriage networks, food practices, community organisations, leadership spaces, social distance and silence.
For Dr Kishore, the documentary is an attempt to record these conversations through lived experience rather than abstract debate.
“This film began with my own questions,” said Dr Kishore. “Over many years, I kept hearing similar experiences from people living in different Australian cities. Many had treated those incidents as isolated or difficult to explain. The documentary became a way of listening to those experiences carefully and asking what they mean when heard together.”
The documentary features Professor Hari Bapuji, Asmita Mahire Singh, Aparna Ramteke, Neeraj Ramteke, Dr Parag Moon, Dr Rupali S. Bhamare, Dr Haroon Kasim, Dr Prashant Khobargade, Dr Sangeeta Khobargade and Dr Ratan Lal.
Their reflections bring together research, advocacy, personal memory, community work and everyday experiences of caste in Australia and the Indian diaspora.
Professor Hari Bapuji said caste must be considered as part of any serious discussion on equality.
“Caste violates the very foundation of equality that democracies are built upon. You cannot address gender and racial discrimination while ignoring caste.”
Dr Rupali S Bhamare said caste can continue after migration through everyday assumptions.
“Even in Australia, people try to judge you through your surname or your family’s occupation back in India.”
Dr Kishore said the film does not claim to speak for an entire community. Instead, it creates a public space for experiences often shared privately but rarely heard collectively.
“This is not a film asking audiences to agree with every perspective,” he said. “It is a film asking audiences to listen.”
The Melbourne Documentary Film Festival screening will be followed by a Q&A with Dr Kishore and contributors appearing in the film.
Screening Details
Sydney Private Community Screening
Date: Saturday, 18 July 2026
Time: 3:00 pm
Venue: The Regency, 18 George Young Street, Auburn
Melbourne Documentary Film Festival Screening
Date: Sunday, 19 July 2026
Time: 12:15 pm
Venue: Cinema Nova, Melbourne
Post-screening: Q&A with Dr Vikrant Kishore and contributors appearing in the documentary
Film: Resisting Casteism in Australia
Director: Dr Vikrant Kishore
Running Time: 61 minutes
Language: English
Classification: E15+
Tickets: https://www.cinemanova.com.au/films/mdff26-resisting-casteism-in-australia
Website: https://www.vikrantkishore.com/resistingcasteism
Media Contact:
Dr Vikrant Kishore
vikrantkishore@gmail.com
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