Feature Film:
Hoop Like THis
Saturday October 24, 2026
7:00 PM - 9:15 PM
Hoop like this
"Hoop Like This" traces the rise of the world’s first professional Indian basketball team, where 12 players risk their careers, reputation, and identity to redefine who belongs in the game.
Past screenings: LA Asian Pacific Film Festival, CAAMFest, Asian American Showcase (Chicago), DC APA Film Festival, Greenpoint Film Festival (Audience Award winner), Asian American Int'l Film Festival
WATCH TRAILER
Q&A Guests and Moderator
Moderator: Pranav Iyer
Pranav Iyer is the founder of AMAZN HQ, a sports media platform dedicated to championing Asian athletes and reshaping how Asian athleticism is represented in mainstream culture. A Bay Area native, former collegiate football player, and sports journalist, Pranav and AMAZN HQ were among the early storytellers documenting India Rising and its athletes as the story captured in Hoop Like This was actually unfolding. His unique perspective as both an early chronicler of the team and a leader in Asian sports media makes him a natural moderator for this conversation.
Director/Producer: Shubhangi Shekhar
Shubhangi Shekhar is a multi-hyphenate creator with development, digital production, directing, writing, marketing, and journalism experience from award-winning and critically acclaimed global media companies such as A24, Verizon Media, Roy Kapur Films, Condé Nast Entertainment, and Patreon. She was also part of the inaugural class of The Salon Mentorship Program for up-and-coming South Asian talent in the directing track, under the mentorship of TV director Anu Valia. Along with producing, directing, and developing a handful of independent projects, she has also supported and mentored up-and-coming South Asian writers as one of the writer’s room leads with the Rickshaw Film Foundation.
Player: Gokul Natesan
Gokul Natesan is a Bay Area native, professional basketball player, and one of the athletes featured in Hoop Like This. After a standout NCAA career at the Colorado School of Mines, he went on to play professionally around the world, including in Taiwan alongside NBA champion Jeremy Lin, while earning his master’s degree in computer science from Columbia University. Today, he works in Silicon Valley while continuing his professional basketball career, bringing together two paths rarely pursued at the same time.
Player: Sai Tummala
Sai Tummala is a physician and elite basketball player featured in Hoop Like This, who competed with India Rising while simultaneously pursuing a career in orthopedic medicine. A former college basketball player at the University of Hawaiʻi, he completed his orthopedic surgery residency at the Mayo Clinic and a sports medicine fellowship at Stanford. His journey embodies one of the film’s central tensions: what it means to pursue an athletic dream alongside the expectations and realities of a more traditional career.
Executive Producer: Akhil Hegde
Akhil Hegde is an executive producer of Hoop Like This and the founder and CEO of HRTGE, a global media company supporting South Asian artists and creatives. Previously an agent at UTA for six years, he helped build the agency’s representation of South Asian talent across music and film, working with artists including Zayn, NAV, Savan Kotecha, and Indo Warehouse. His work focuses on expanding the infrastructure, visibility, and opportunities available to South Asian talent across entertainment and culture.
*Times, films, and guests are subject to change without notice.*