NFDC's June 14, 2026 announcement selected 12 projects for WAVES Doc Bazaar Recommends ahead of the June 16-18 market in Mumbai. Four were assigned to the Work-in-Progress Lab, while eight completed or nearly completed films were seeking sales, distribution and exhibition opportunities. All 12 were scheduled for an opening-day pitch session.
The lab selections included Adieu Dilli, It Takes A Village, Kunchok and His Many Moons and On a Good Note. NFDC also announced three grants of Rs 3 lakh each. The wider Viewing Room catalogue comprised 155 projects from 19 countries in 35 languages; the selected cohort was a curated group, not an additional catalogue to be counted on top of those submissions.
The festival's 2026 rules explain the practical difference between the two routes. The lab was a closed-door workshop for unfinished documentary and animation projects, requiring substantial filmed material and an edit still open to change. Directors and editors were the intended participants. This places feedback with the people who can revise the film's structure, rather than making the session principally a sales presentation.
The Viewing Room instead enabled eligible industry delegates to inspect submitted work. Filmmakers could supply complete films or qualifying extracts, while catalogue information identified the producer who held the rights and could answer professional enquiries. That arrangement connected the material being viewed with someone able to discuss its commercial use.
Access was controlled at two levels. NFDC admitted delegates according to industry roles, including buyers, investors and festival programmers; filmmakers could further restrict which of those delegates saw their own film. The rules also provided viewer reports. This creates a specific distinction between visibility and unrestricted release: a filmmaker could seek professional attention while choosing the audience permitted to see the work.
