Jhanak

In a traditional Indian set-up, women are often relegated to the space of domesticity within a family, with little outlet or options for understanding their personal, unique desires. The short film is an engagement with this thought as it takes the viewer into a single day in the life of a housewife.

Married to a callous, distanced husband, she works hard at being a supportive, loving partner, but is only met with rejection and dismissal at every step. If on the one hand she recounts the story of a bird trapped in a gold cage, on the other, there is also an indication of an increasing amount of bitterness trickling into her own personality, making her cynical and weary of the world around her.

The writing of the film deserves a mention for bringing out these elements that constitute her life, as well as portraying an intimate, but often denied part of her personality - her relationship with dance. The narrative finally concludes with the suggestion that perhaps it could have been her performance art that would have let her to be who she truly desired, finally allowing the trapped bird to soar free. However, in this existence, that remains far from being her reality.