The first image that came to me was simple: an unaware innocent boy holding something provocative (like a sex object) trying to mimic a dystopian world he lives in. The image captured how I feel about the current state of world politics; an endless tug of war for power between global leaders, so primitive and absurd that it’s really just elaborate child’s play. Dulo isn’t about childhood sentimentally, it’s about what seeps into young minds when adults have failed. It examines how easily the mechanics of war get repeated without question: the gestures, the threats, the absurd rituals of power. The word “Dulo” itself is a crude taunt. It’s exactly how wars start, through comparison, through the need to prove dominance. When we picture a child picking up a discarded object to feel powerful, we see the world we’ve made. This film is an attempt to examine that inheritance without judgment, allowing the image to speak for itself.

Mehkansh Kathuria is a filmmaker whose work spans narrative, documentary, and commercial direction. His short film Mirchi Café (2019) garnered over 20 awards and was screened at more than 40 festivals, including the Dada Saheb Phalke Film Festival.
Inspired equally from classical literature and contemporary visual art, Kathuria creates character-driven stories that explore cultural identity and inter-generational relationships through unconventional narrative structures.

I’ve always been fascinated by humanity’s extraordinary capacity for adaptation, how we bend without breaking, especially in impossible circumstances. Born from late-night conversations about how children absorb and replicate the violence surrounding them. The contrast between a child’s innocent worldview and the harsh realities of war and power struck me as such a compelling storytelling approach that I had to bring Dulo to life. We deliberately avoided easy answers, crafting a fictitious world told through a tongue-in-cheek style we hoped would feel both raw and authentic. In this borderless landscape, kids find ways to play and survive amid devastation. We wanted to capture something both heartbreaking and hopeful. Dulo is our attempt at uncompromising cinema that invites viewers to see conflict through eyes unclouded by adult cynicism, something we hope will resonate long after the credits roll.

Ajinkya Hukerikar is working at the intersection of filmmaking and emerging technology. At 16, his short “The Trek” earned a Special Mention Jury Award at the International Children’s Film Festival of India (2013). An NYU alumnus, Ajinkya has worked with acclaimed filmmakers including M.M. Serra, Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Sultan Sharrief, Toni Dove, and Terence Nance. Currently at Zero Density, he consults clients across the US and Canada while working at the forefront of Virtual Production workflows. His films tell stories from diverse cultural perspectives, finding the shared humanity in different communities and backgrounds. He is currently developing projects that explore new forms of cinematic storytelling and expand the ways audiences experience film.