India, Nov. 8 -- National Award-winning filmmaker Vinod Kapri's search for the lead actors of Pyre took several years, countless auditions and a few unexpected turns. He had considered actors such as Naseeruddin Shah and Ratna Pathak Shah, and even tried making the film with the real-life couple who inspired the story. But the faces he was looking for eventually came from two rather unexpected places.

Set in Uttarakhand's Kumaon region, Pyre tells the story of an elderly couple whose children have left their village in search of better opportunities. With no one else around, the two are left to navigate old age, loneliness and the changing life of their mountain home. The film looks at migration through the lives of parents who stay behi...