About Us

Rūng Film Festival aims to empower minority communities by supporting filmmakers of color, especially of Pakistani heritage by screening and awarding original works of indie filmmakers. The film festival aspires to play a crucial role in enhancing representation, promoting diversity, connecting creatives, and contributing to a more inclusive and equitable film industry across Texas and beyond.

Co Founders

Yousuf Siddiqui

Yousuf is an Organizational Effectiveness Consultant, Executive Coach, South Asian media creator and Squash enthusiast. He is a co-founder of the Rung Film Festival, the first in-person Pakistani-American film festival in the United States. To channel his own creative energy, he is currently working on launching his podcast called Desi Men Finally Talking. A squash player for over 20 years, Yousuf is on the board of the Southern California Squash Association.

Shahid Iqbal

Shahid has been championing the cause of Urdu language in the US since 2012.. He has authored and produced 5 indie films in the last decade and played an instrumental role in many theater and film projects. A Houstonian since 1994, Shahid is working to provide a platform for the creatives, in particular Pakistani American creatives. His latest efforts include a podcast on Youtube featuring Pakistani creatives (of diverse backgrounds) and a brand new film festival in Houston, Texas called the Rung Film Festival (RFF).

Festival Director

Involved since his teens in the South Asian media and theater space, has recently achieved significant milestones in his career. As a Producer, his latest triumph is the acclaimed feature film “Pinky Memsaab”, which has garnered praise in cinemas and is now streaming on Netflix. Prior to this, Fahad collaborated with 25 directors worldwide on the feature “The Owner,” that had earned a Guinness World Record in 2012.He has also directed and produced documentaries for institutions like the Scottish Documentary Film Institute and Imagenation Abu Dhabi .

Earlier, Fahad gained recognition for his independent short film “The Veil” (2006), which received awards at the WorldFest Houston Film Festival. His cinematic journey began with the creation of the silent short film “A Dollar Bill” (2002) during a workshop in Houston. Throughout his career, Fahad’s dedication to storytelling has propelled him forward, establishing him as a respected figure in the film space. Currently he’s running a production company Shoot At Sight with his partners and serves as Festival Director for Rung Film Festival.

Fahad Shaikh

Board of Advisors

Sadia Uqaili

As a Pakistani American award-winning artist, filmmaker, and educator, Sadia Uqaili utilizes the camera and her art to inspire, motivate, heal, and celebrate. An indefatigable creative force, her work has been exhibited in more than twenty exhibits and the list of her curatorial shows runs into thirty plus, since her migration to Chicago in 2001 from Canada. Her work is currently on show at the South Asia Institute, Seen and Unseen is rated as the Top Ten exhibits by the Chicago Tribune. She has received awards for her art from the Internationale d’art Miniature, Malaysia Annual Exhibition of International Contemporary Prints, Alberta Foundation for the Arts, and the LoreVa Grellner Scholarship. Winner of the Chicago South Asian Film Festival Award, Wild Things was a short film produced under her direction at Snow City Arts, an arts education program serving at risk youth in hospitals that Sadia led as Artistic Director for 15 years. As a Kartemquin fellow, Sadia is currently producing Bapsi, a feature-length documentary. She is a proud member of A- Doc, BGDM, and Mezcla Media Collective. She serves on panels and juries for multimedia exhibits and at the Chicago South Asian Film Festival, and the RUNG film festival in Houston.

is a director & actor for film. She is a GEMS Film Lab fellow developing her debut feature film which she pitched at the Frontieres Market at Fantasia Festival 2024. She is in post-production for the documentary ‘Niswan Nama,’ funded by Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy (SOC) Films. Notable for her women-centered storytelling, Zehra co-directed the Canada Council Grant-funded short film ‘Farzana.’ Her direction work earned her the National AGAHI Award for Journalism in Culture. As part of the 2024 Creators of Colour incubator she is developing a scripted series that she pitched at the TIFF Big Pitch 2024. As an actor she plays the protagonist in the upcoming television series ‘Second Chance Hina.‘ Zehra’s acting debut was in the Pakistani film ‘Khel Khel Mein’ (2022), followed by the Indian web series for Zee5 ‘Qatil Haseenaon Kay Naam’ (2022). She has played the lead roles in the Canadian short film ‘Spin Over’ (2023) and theatre play ‘Transit’ (2023).

Zehra Nawab

Sara Iqbal

A Pakistani Texan from Lahore, Sara belongs to the subcontinent’s rich heritage dating as far back as the Mughals. She comes from the Chughtai family, who has significantly contributed to the Arts in Pakistan. Her great grandfather, Master MiraN Baksh, was Assistant Principal, and late uncle Abdul Rahman Chughtai was the Head Instructor at Mayo School of Arts, Lahore, now the National College of Arts, Lahore.

Sara finished her F.A from Kinnaird College, Lahore, and moved to the U.S. with her family in 1987. She has a BFA in Graphic Communications from the University of Houston. She provides Visual Design and Creative Direction for Branding and Marketing to small businesses and nonprofit organizations through her company, Graphic Matt{rs. Her clients range from Oil & Gas, Healthcare, Education to Legal and Design industries. She also serves as the Design Advocacy Director for AIGA Houston, the professional association for design in the U.S. and is certified in Nonprofit Board Education. She strongly believes in the power of art and design to impact lives, incite curiosity and inquiry that leads to discovery and knowledge.

Sara was always compelled to explore the unbeaten paths through volunteering with diverse organizations. She’s lent her graphic design skills to create memorable and award-winning event experiences for WHCC (West Houston Chamber of Commerce), APPNA (American Pakistani Physicians of North America), SIUT (Sindh Institute of Urology & Transplantation), HDF (Human Development Fund), TCF (The Citizens Foundation), and ASID TXGC (American Society of Interior Designers). She’s also been a WHCC (West Houston Chamber of Commerce) Women Leading Business.

Sara founded Indus Arts Council with her husband, Shahid Iqbal, and sister, Sabah Iqbal, primarily to teach the Urdu language to their children born in the United States. Since 2012, the nonprofit organization has evolved into a hub of immersive events, theater, and language classes, all converging to Urdu and its heritage. As a Communications Director for Indus Arts Council, Sara develops board communications and brand messaging, as well as campaigns, promotions, and event experiences to manifest the colors and culture of Pakistan.

Faran Haroon Tahir was born in Los Angeles, California while his parents were studying acting and directing at UCLA Theatre Department. He comes from a theater family well known in Pakistan and India. Both his parents are actors, directors and writers in Pakistan. Faran moved back to Los Angeles, California in 1980, when he was 17 years old. He received his Bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley and his graduate degree from the Institute for Advanced Theatre Training at Harvard University. He has been nominated and has won many awards for his work in theater and film.

Faran Tahir

Kamran Shaikh

Kamran Shaikh was born in Karachi, Pakistan in 1974. He and his parents migrated to New York in 1980 and lived in Queens for 10 years before moving to Long Island. His breakthrough was an appearance on Marvel’s Captain America: Civil War where he decided he wanted to act for a living. His career in acting has been a fast paced success story since then, landing him major roles on shows like, Law and Order: Organized Crime, OuterBanks, Cobra Kai, Haunted Mansion, Half Baked 2, The Tutor, Ozark, The Resident, NCIS and many more.