Rigzin Kalon

Rigzin Kalon is a writer, director, and filmmaker based in Ladakh. He was born and brought up in Leh, Ladakh. He has done a Bachelor of Arts in English and Literature/Letters from the University of Delhi, New Delhi.  Since his childhood, he has been fascinated by stories. His earliest memories are of his aunt narrating to him stories by the fireside on cold winter evenings in Ladakh.

He used to listen to those mystical sagas about the spirits that inhabit the minds and landscape of Ladakh, which once practiced the Bon religion before embracing Buddhism. This made him develop a keen interest in story-telling and filmmaking. Today, as a filmmaker, Rigzin aims to continue this tradition of story-telling and carry on the legacy through a more contemporary medium of cinema and films.

Rigzin started his career in 2006 as a writer and director with Tsozung Vision, Ladakh. Since then, he had experience in making documentaries, TV series, telefilms, music videos, news magazines, video art installations, and feature films, and his expertise lies in film direction and screenwriting. His first experience of working behind the camera was when he assisted filmmaker Shekhar Kapur Shekhar Kapur is a renowned Indian actor, director >> Read More... on an ad film for Charminar cigarettes. The renowned director told him that a filmmaker's job was "one of the toughest in the world," and this motivation increased his love and obsession to make films.

As a writer-director, Rigzin’s first independent work was the critically acclaimed documentary film, 'The Old Man & The Lamp,’ in Ladakh, which was also telecast on the local television network in 1997. He then moved to Mumbai and scripted eleven episodes of a Teleserial that discussed a sensitive topic on adolescent sexuality called 'Baali Umar Ko Salaam' for Comet Media Foundation in 1999. Later, in 2001, he worked as an assistant director for Farhan Akhtar’s film, 'Dil Chahta Hai.’ Thereafter, he worked with the filmmaker Shubroto Dey on the screenplay of 'Music of the Daffodils,’ which was later adapted into a book. In 2003, he also a thriller script, 'Naqsh' for filmmaker Munna Rizvi.

Rigzin has also ventured into television, making documentaries and short films for Doordarshan-Leh. He also wrote, directed, and produced a Ladakhi feature film called 'E-Mitsey,’ and it was well-appreciated by the audience. Moreover, as a representative of the Ladakhi film industry, he is also trying to coordinate efforts to organize the first Ladakh International Film Festival in his hometown, Leh. This will help to attract international attention and recognition for the Ladakhi Film Industry.