Panday’s ‘The Everest Dream’ Wins Best Documentary Award in the US
Simara: Documentary film The Everest Dream, directed by filmmaker and journalist Ganesh Panday, has won the Best Documentary Film Award at the Cobb International Film Festival in Georgia, USA.
The festival was held from August 6 to 9 in Marietta, Georgia. The Everest Dream was the only film selected from Nepal for the festival. According to Dr. Richard Tavenaro, Executive Director and Festival Director of the Cobb International Film Festival, The Everest Dream won the Best Documentary Film Award in competition with films submitted from around the world.
Based on the extraordinary Everest journey of British survivors of brain injuries, The Everest Dream tells the inspiring story of people who, despite facing serious brain injuries and major challenges in their daily lives, refused to give up on their dreams and worked to achieve them.
Doctors had told some of the survivors that it would be difficult for them to walk, speak, or return to normal daily life. However, refusing to accept those limitations, they came to Nepal with a dream of reaching Everest Base Camp. Led by James Lamb of The Little Sherpa Foundation, a team of five brain-injury survivors and their family members—seven people in total—successfully reached Everest Base Camp. Director Panday documented this extraordinary journey over a period of approximately one and a half years.
The Everest Dream adds another significant achievement to Panday’s international documentary career. His acclaimed documentary Bhagyale Bachekaharu (Nepal Earthquake: Heroes, Survivors and Miracles) won the Best Documentary Film Award at the same Cobb International Film Festival in 2017. Likewise, his documentary Co-Husband, which explores the practice of polyandry, won the Best Documentary Film Award at the same festival in 2022.
Thus, three different documentaries directed by Panday have won the Best Documentary Film Award at the same international film festival in three different years—2017, 2022, and 2026. This is considered a remarkable international achievement for Nepali documentary filmmaking.
Bhagyale Bachekaharu won more than 17 international awards and was screened in more than 32 countries. Similarly, Co-Husband has received more than a dozen Best Documentary Film awards and has been featured at more than 40 international film festivals.
The Everest Dream features the contributions of Associate Producer Sharda Gaire, cinematographers Suresh Shrestha and Niraj Panthi, editor Ishwor Koirala, musicians Jugal Dangol and Sandeep Sardar, and narrator Kaushal Ghimire.
Director Panday has expressed special gratitude to James Lamb and The Little Sherpa Foundation for inspiring the beginning of the film project. Through his collaboration with The Little Sherpa Foundation, Panday also had the opportunity to screen Bhagyale Bachekaharu at the Parliament of the United Kingdom in 2017.
The Everest Dream began its international festival journey after its premiere in Nepal. According to Director Panday, the film is preparing to participate in several prestigious international film festivals around the world in the coming days.
Panday said, ‘This award is not only my personal achievement; it is a recognition of the entire team and the struggles of the people featured in the film. Being able to share the message with audiences around the world that even after a brain injury, people can dream new dreams and work to achieve them is our greatest achievement.’
