Seven years ago, Shivam Adhikari read a news report of a woman in the far-west who was raped when she was banished from her home during her menstruation. That news sparked the inspiration in Adhikari to write and direct Panchayat, a film that hits the screens today.

Panchayat is based in the year 1974 CE two years after King Birendra ascended the throne and explores the Chhaupadi system, when it was at the heights of the practice. “The film depicts the prevalent system of justice, which was largely relying on the head of the village, the Pancha, who is faced with a moral conundrum,” said director Adhikari.

The film was screened at the San Francisco International New Concept Film Festival, wherein the film bagged two awards—Best Foreign Language feature and Best Actress award (Nita Dhungana)—under the foreign-lanuage film category. However, the filmmakers had to face several hurdles to get the film approved from the Central Film Censor Board of Nepal.

“They demanded that we remove certain footage and Nepal’s monarchy-era national anthem,” Adhikari told the Post, “If a film depicts a historical time-period, there will be elements from that time period.”

Adhikari also added that the censor board did not reason with him or his team members, and instead kept demanding that scenes be cut out. Eventually, though, the film passed through the censor with a PG certificate, “even though there was no need for one.” Panchayat features actors Ganesh Giri, Janwi Basnet, Suchitra Uprety, and Pakriti Dhungel, alongside Khanal, Dhungana and Rana. Panchayat is produced jointly by Shushant Shrestha and Shankar Subedi.