Rihanna

Suraj Paudel is a writer, director, and editor from Nepal. His latest short film, Rihanna (2025), premiered at the 30th Busan International Film Festival. As an editor, he worked on Lori (2022), which competed for the Palme d’Or at Cannes and won a Special Mention. A Fellow of the CHANEL × BIFF Asian Film Academy and recipient of the Most Promising Filmmaker Award (2022), Suraj has built a diverse body of work across shorts, series, and features. His earlier directorial works include One Mole of Water (2012), winner of 2nd Prize at the My View H2O Asia-Pacific Contest, and AAMA (2015), an official selection at the Ekadeshma Film Festival. He also contributed as a screenwriter to the acclaimed TV series Singha Durbar (2016). Currently, Suraj is developing his new short film The Freezer, supported by IDM’s Short Film Production Fund, and preparing his debut feature Where the River Runs South, which has gained recognition at the Global Media Makers LA Residency, ACF’s Script Development Fund, and the Asian Project Market (2023).