Vishal, a young documentary filmmaker, is on a quest to find the perfect subject for his film. His enthusiastic local guide takes him into the heart of a story, one about a little boy, Mato and his pet goat, Arjun. 

Basing its plot on Mahasweta Devi’s ‘The Armenian Champa Tree’, the film presents a nexus between superstition and sincere companionship. It endeavors to construct its world with care and thought as it takes us deeper into the issues that plague its characters, presenting a metanarrative of sorts, a film about making a film. 
The film’s most notable aspect is its approach to storytelling, especially achieved with its edit and screenplay. Though a few stones remain unturned in achieving all of these intentions, the film in its current form offers a completed whole, while also leaving the door open for more such attempts at storytelling and world-building in the future.

The Legend of Mato | Short Film Nominee

The title of the film establishes a sense of cyclicality and the inability to break out of it as its primary theme. The preoccupation is then explored by the actions of the characters, each in a fix of their own. It begins with a man stranded in the middle of a desolate highway which is infamous for robberies. He soon manages to hitch a ride, but is his helper truly a good Samaritan? The film offers all its intentions in the revelations pertaining to the true identity of its many characters. The twists stand to gain a little from nuance, but on the other hand, offer lucidity in terms of the message the film has set out to share.

180: The Loop | Short Film Nominee

Agam (The Soul), as the title suggests, is a story of sorrow, grief, the manner it can affect one's mental well-being and a glimpse into what lies beyond that. A person accidentally runs over a drunkard as a result of perhaps a suicide attempt on the latter's part. Despite being absolved of guilt by the family of the victim, as well as the police, he finds himself unable to let go of the trauma of the accident. Days go by as he continues to distance himself from his friends, family and work. Irrespective of the concern or advice that is thrown his way, he makes little to no progress towards closure. However, sometimes important lessons in life can come from the most unexpected corners, suggests the film. Consequently, one unlikely afternoon as the protagonist babysits his friend's daughter, an important revelation awaits him. Will it truly remind him to find the soulfulness of life within him again?

Agam | Short Film Nominee

Dominated by red visuals, the short film is a dimly-lit exploration of a character's struggle with his mental health. The single-character narrative is a grim and gloomy representation of his inner demons and the constant battle he wages with them. From nightmares that threaten to bleed into his reality, to thoughts and voices that perhaps never leave him alone, the film truly is a disconcerting look at schizophrenia. However, it also runs the danger of over-simplifying the mental disorder by portraying someone who lives with it as inhabiting a reality far from normative society. It borders on perhaps stigmatising the disorder and undoing the fight of several schizophrenic themselves who are working towards raising awareness against this very perception of the disorder. Having said that, the film indeed is noble intentioned, irrespective of whether or not it comes across as being objective in its treatment of its subject.

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