~ A profound cinematic reminder of the eternal sin of abandoning one’s parents ~
By Sonu Tyagi, Founder – Go Spiritual India & Approach Entertainment
Goa, 29 November 2025
In the sacred chaos of the Mahakumbh, where millions come to wash away their sins in the Triveni Sangam, debutant director Ashutosh Singh has captured a sin that even the holy waters cannot easily cleanse – the abandonment of one’s own mother.
Khoya Paya, the heart-wrenching film specially screened at the 56th International Film Festival of India (IFFI), is not just cinema; it is a spiritual alarm bell for a society that worships Ma Durga in temples yet forgets the living goddess ageing in the corner of the house.
Veteran actress Seema Biswas, who embodies the abandoned mother with devastating dignity, spoke with the fire of truth after the screening: “Self-respect is essential. Without respect, familial bonds lose all meaning. If I were in her place, I wouldn’t have returned.”
These are not mere dialogues – they are the voice of Dharma itself. In our ancient scriptures, matru devo bhava (mother is divine) and pitru devo bhava (father is divine) are not poetic suggestions; they are the very foundation of spiritual evolution. When a child deserts aged parents, he does not merely commit a social crime – he severs his own spiritual roots. The remorse may knock later, but the soul of the mother, once wounded beyond repair, may choose moksha over forced reconciliation. Khoya Paya dares to show that unfiltered truth.
Chandan Roy Sanyal, who plays the guilt-ridden son, beautifully pointed out that even flawed human beings carry their own justifications. Yet the film gently reminds us through its climax: justification is the ego’s last weapon; true atonement begins only when the ego surrenders.
What moved me deeply is how the film was literally born in the womb of India’s greatest spiritual gathering – the Mahakumbh. Director Ashutosh Singh, shooting in his own village amidst crores of pilgrims, dressed his entire unit like sadhus and common devotees. They took the holy dip themselves. The cameras became just another phone in the crowd. The chaos of faith became the film’s soul. As Ashutosh says, “The colour of the film was found in Mahakumbh.” Indeed, the eternal clash between tradition and modernity, between selfie sticks and saffron flags, between devotion and distraction – all found reflection in every frame.
Producer Hemanshu Rai felt the script’s power a year ago in Goa itself and knew this story of the strongest yet darkest side of the mother-son bond had to reach the world. Actress Anjali Patil joined simply for the rare simplicity of the narrative and the blessing of sharing screen space with Seema ji.
In an age where old-age homes are multiplying faster than temples, Khoya Paya arrives as a spiritual intervention. It asks every child in the audience one piercing question that our rishis asked thousands of years ago:
Can you truly progress on the path of Dharma, success or even moksha while the womb that brought you into existence lies abandoned in the crowd?
Seema Biswas ji answered it today without hesitation: Respect for the elderly is non-negotiable.
May this film travel from IFFI to every heart, every home, every temple gathering, and awaken the forgotten commandment – The parents you honour become the ladder to the Divine. The parents you abandon become the chain that pulls you back, life after life.
– Sonu Tyagi Founder, Go Spiritual & Approach Entertainment
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