How far are you willing to go to punish someone for infidelity? Would you go down the road of vengeance to never return or would you drive away to indifference, and move on? The short film raises these questions with notable performances by Kalki Koechlin and Monica Sharma Dogra, but at the heart of it lies a much darker reality. Along with an engaging climax, the film also offers a deep comment on gender roles. When Kalki's character accuses her husband of cheating on her, he dismisses it as being thoughts of an imbecile, "a fifth grader". The narrative also invests its energy in portraying her as a woman struggling with potentially neurotic behaviour. The fact that despite his cheating, he confidently writes her off could perhaps suggest that her psychosis was a result of his behavioural patterns. Maybe when she accused him of cheating only after a seemingly inane encounter, her anger and distrust came with a massive baggage of a past where he had constantly denied her narrative, making her question her own reality. Would it be too far to suggest that, like as is true of many heteronormative romantic equations, there was an element of gaslighting involved in this equation? If indeed yes, the ending would leave the viewer with a sense of closure. What happens when she has had enough of the same dysfunctional, toxic, soul-sapping relationship? The short film has a satisfying answer.

The Thought of You | Short Film of the Day

The film is the most intereting and unnerving rigmarole of human emotions and relationships. A cab driver and his passenger go down the path of discussing fidelity and cheating. Once on the route with them, the viewer stumbles across sharp turns and unexpected twists. The film is well-written and has the right elements of humour found in the tragedies of life. The narrative is subtle, deep and structured skilfully, along with an admirable performance by Manu Rishi.

Ishq Ki Googly | Short Film of the Day

Shame attempts to be a powerful narrative about the struggle of a woman to feel accepted, loved and beautiful. As she goes around cleaning rooms at the hotel she works at, her feelings often find an outlet in voyeurism and sneaky glances into the lives of the guests. The film is a comment on how class adds to the oppression of a woman who may not fulfill conventional beauty standards. Despite strong performances by Swara Bhasker and Ranvir Shorey, Shame falls short of delivering all that it promises. While it wants to leave the audience with the message that often the only thing stopping you from being all that you can be is your own crippling sense of shame, the events leading to this conclusion are not convincing. Full points to the intention, but that does not take away from the fact that the sudden change in the character trajectory of the protagonist comes as an implausible plot development.

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