The film carries a very important message, one about the empowerment of women, with its primary focus on the lives of Indian housewives. The story locates itself in Guwahati, Assam, where a non-profit runs a sewing school for young women and girls, thereby allowing them the agency to step out of their house, and potentially acquire a skill as well as financial independence. It is a powerful narrative, carrying forth its message in no equivocal terms. The same is achieved by presenting the experiences of its interviewees, and the manner in which they overcame familial and societal obstacles, among others, to the viewer. Along with its subject matter, the film is marked by skilled and expert editing. It serves the crucial purpose of making it much more than what it already is. The two elements together, story and technical skill of editing, ensures the success of the narrative, encouraging the desire and conviction in women to step out of their confinements, put in place by others more often than nought, in pursuit of their dreams.

Pins n Needles | Short Film Nominee

The domestic space and marriage is often marked by abuse and oppression which need not always have an explicitly physical manifestation. The film explores one such example of a marriage where the husband subjects his wife to constant verbal attacks - from her cooking to her inability to bear a child to something as simple as not answering the phone sooner, all of these become a reason for him to lose his temper. Rue never shows us characters' faces, but simply uses an angry voice which is wedded to the visuals of a woman silently going about the activities at hand. It is only at the end that the film reveals the intentions behind its title, and the viewer is allowed a glimpse into a coping mechanism the woman has employed to put up with the cruel behaviour meted out to her so far.

Rue | Short Film Nominee

The short film adopts a visual style which is reminiscent of the sepia toned cinematic reel of the past. It is fairly straight in its story - one that shares an account of the life of a young woman as she moves from one task of her life to another - be it with a family member or by herself. The narrative offers situations and incidents relatable for several - from boiling noodles to taking your bicycle for a ride. By its own admission (read: YouTube description), A Lover's Spat wants to invoke a sense of nostalgia for all those memories and moments that existed in a pre-lockdown world. Indeed, the mellow tone and approach of the film then becomes even more relevant, especially in its sincerity to share these intentions with the viewer.

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