Leeds graduate filmmaker wins gong
Mumbai-born Nishad Choughule, a graduate filmmaker from Leeds Beckett University has won the Alumni of the Year Award in the Professional Achievement category at the prestigious Education UK Alumni Awards in India.
Nishad Chaughule, who studied MA Filmmaking and graduated in 2013, was presented with his award by the Mayor of London and Baroness Amos at a high profile ceremony in New Delhi, where he fought off stiff competition from hundreds of applicants and two other shortlisted candidates from The University of Cambridge and University of Cardiff.
Nishad is an independent filmmaker and producer who produced a film whilst studying which went on to win an Academy Award in the Student Foreign Language Film category.
He produced the short film ‘Border Patrol’ with his fellow students while studying in Leeds.
The students’ short film was shot in Germany and tells a story of two German border force officers, Karl and Franz, who, whilst working on patrol on the Austrian border of Germany, come across a dead body hanging in the woods. To avoid the aggravation and paperwork that would follow the discovery of the dead body, they dump it on the other side of the border so that they can enjoy a football match between the two countries that evening.
In his acceptance speech at the awards, Nishad said that his UK education gave him life skills and he is grateful for the friends and contacts he made during his time at Leeds which greatly opened up his mind and enabled him to become a better storyteller and filmmaker.
Nishad also thanked his tutors at Leeds Beckett University the Leeds Beckett team in India team for their support.
Run by the British Council, the Education UK Alumni Awards highlight the outstanding achievements of international alumni who have studied in the UK, showcasing the benefits of a high-quality UK education through inspiring alumni success stories, and the positive impact they bring back to their community and country.
Since completing his master’s degree, Nishad has been involved in a whole host of different film projects in Europe, Russia and India, including a project with BBC films. He now works at an independent film studio in Mumbai.
