24&16 Films: Reinventing Film Production in India
Pragya Tandon directed her first film when she was 11. She’d cast her younger brother Rajveer in lead roles because constrained resources forced her into innocent nepotistic practices. She would make shows and music videos on any available camera.
None of that came on her CV. Rather, that document highlighted a B Com (Hons) from Delhi University and an MBA from Master’s Union with their flagship PGP TBM course. Master’s Union would also be the place where she met her fellow co-founder, Rishi Vashisht. In the period between directing her first film and earning an MBA, Pragya would get obsessed with building businesses, and the craving for filmmaking slowly died.
However, the urge couldn’t be submerged as she created 24 & 16 Films, a film production company leveraging AI tools to produce high-quality movies. She concedes that her brain is wired to think in images. Connecting the dots visually allowed her to make sense of stories, brands and people around her.
Filmmakers are a unique congregation. They project images in their head onto the screen. A process that’s exhausting yet liberating. However, for a long time, the barrier was simply too huge to surpass. A dedicated crew, crores in capital, permissions for places and years to create something worthwhile.
But AI arrived, and she finally felt that the distance between the images in her head and capturing them on screen had collapsed. It wasn’t just about the technology or creating a magnum opus for the ages. It was the desire to create films close to her heart that propelled her forward. They started making AI films in August 2025 and have worked with 50+ brands in less than a year. Marico, Myntra, Van Heusen, Noise, Titan and Yas Holdings are among the top brands they’ve worked with so far.
The Relationship with Films:
Asked about her favourite film, there’s a glint in her eyes. Interstellar is the immediate answer. The technical ambition, combined with a father-daughter relationship juxtaposed with Christopher Nolan’s storytelling skills. She then mentions the Joe Wright trifecta of Atonement, Anna Karenina, Pride and Prejudice. Her storytelling lexicon can be understood in a simple sentence.
‘Nolan for architecture. Joe Wright for feeling. I am always trying to build something that has both.’
Pivoting towards Bollywood, she mentions Rockstar, highlighting the toll that art can put on an artist. When discussing the pushback against AI in creative fields, Pragya was sympathetic to the plight of people who’ve spent years building their craft. Your livelihood being flattened to a well-defined prompt is scary indeed.
AI and Advice for the Creative Field:
She also highlights that most of the pushback is from people who refuse to adapt, dressing it up as principles. In June, Martin Scorsese, someone who spent his entire career building and defending the medium, signed on as a partner and adviser to an AI image company, Black Forest Labs, and used their tool to storyboard his next film.
The first year, she concedes, was the toughest phase, with regular 16-hour workdays. She stretched herself during her notice period by effectively juggling her job and building the business. She would do a full day there, come home, and work with co-founder Rishi until 2 am. Not one to romanticise that period, she asks everyone to find a sustainable model. But the one defining piece of advice is to bet on yourself.
It took every ounce of self-belief for her to leave at the peak of her job and start something from scratch. Nobody hands you certainty, and you will never feel ready, so echoing the famous motto of Nike – Just do it!