Kahanibaaz is a short film which engages with issues of domestic abuse, mental health and women's oppression. Using the idea of misguided anger and the inability to break out of painful situations, the short film offers a gripping narrative of violence, marital discord and childhood trauma. The plight of someone who finds themselves trapped in a pattern of emotional abuse and its consequent destructive expression is delineated in the most intense and sophisticated manner. With its skilled cinematography, good acting and a very satisfying climax, the short film is a must-watch for any connoisseur of films.

Kahanibaaz | Short Film of the Day

The narrative of the film is short, concise, and above all, unforgettably powerful. It starts off at a harmless note of a young woman making a recipe video for perhaps a video blog. However, the actual concern she is trying to draw her viewers' attention to immediately shocks you. It further serves as a jarring reminder of how the most atrocious, cruel acts hide in plane sight, maybe in the house of a seemingly average couple. The film also highlights the disturbing reality of the increase in cases of domestic violence and abuse that several women are being subjected to as a result of the coronavirus lockdown. All in all, the film puts forth its message in a simple, yet intelligent manner which is precisely what makes it deeply impactful.

Smoked Chicken Gravy | Short Film of the Day

Sexuality, mental health, racism and dysfunctional Indian families - the film engages with all of these issues in a palatable manner without giving in to high-sounding jargon. Imagine the premise as a plot device equivalent of a person entering a room and yelling, "Sex!", immediately followed by, "Now that I have your attention, let's talk business". The film achieves this by centering the major chunk of its action around a hickey in clear view of the world on the fair skin of its protagonist. The film might come across as being overly sentimental or dramatic in some parts. However, that's not a flaw, but seems like a conscious choice on the part of the filmmakers with a very clear idea of who their viewer is. It talks about anxiety, the pressure to get married on women, domestic abuse and the burden of expectations on school students, and manages to keep its tone relatable all along. This ensures that the story rings loud and true with its viewer, allowing it to successfully communicate all that it has set out to.

Hickey | Short Film of the Day

The film is a beautiful engagement with the emotion of hatred and the extent to which it can harm someone who harbours it within themselves. The plot loses no time in grabbing the viewer's attention by opening on a note of a heated argument and violence in a household. As a child witnesses the domestic violence unfolding between his parents, his father the abuser, his mother the abused, the background score is utilised skilfully to heighten the emotions. Each actor brings honesty and sincerity to their performance, most notable in the case of the protagonist, allowing the story to succeed in communicating its message loudly and clearly. The chronology and the narrative Hatred adopts to drive this message home is smart and exhibits dedication to storytelling. Overall, the film is an engrossing product, a comment on physical violence, bullying and abuse, which also manages to translate its intentions coherently on screen for the viewer to witness and participate in.

Hatred | Short Film of the Day

The primary action and drama of the film pivots on domestic abuse and its many ramifications on a family. However, intrinsic to this premise is the idea of self-imposed inhibitions, mainly as a result of social constructs and the manner in which gender dynamics are enforced. A pinjra or cage thus becomes the defining metaphor for the lived reality of this mother-son duo who are both direct and indirect victims of an abusive husband and father. The film is marked by notable performances, and a frugality of dialogue which is employed judiciously to share its intentions with the viewer. It does not shy away from sentimentalism, along with tying it with a smattering of animation to drive its message home.

Pinjra | Short Film of the Day

The film opens in a bleak world of alcoholism and domestic abuse. Located at its heart is the protagonist, who despite the immense hardship of those around him, specifically two women he deeply loves and worries for, is determined to reverse his fate. The film presents a sense of iron will to rise above one’s tribulations, the idea of breaking out of one's cage and shackles, and always looking to the sky. The performances and writing both bring these intentions to life with notable skill and potential. However, can hope and the desire to change one’s lot truly overcome the challenges life might have up its sleeve? 

The question remains central to the narrative, eventually being presented as well as answered at the film’s climax. The storytelling paves the path for a longer, more detailed project that engages with the world shared with the viewer in this short.

Aasmaani Kabootar | Spotlight

The title presents to you the motif that would become intrinsic to the film's core. Essentially, the story is of Maloti, a woman who works as a domestic help. The character is brought to life by a notable performance that becomes one of the most standout aspects of the film. 

Alongside the development of the plot are chants and rhymes about goddess Durga whose presence has been a force to reckon with in the household Maloti works in. A life of cruelty and domestic abuse is presented to the viewer with a parallel narrative of a couple that suggests other female presences and their location in society. Tying it all together, however, amidst tears and tragedy is an unmissable act of taking a selfie, one that declares loud and clear the ideas of self and identity to the viewer, while also unpacking the title of the film.

Selfie | Short Film of the Day

Devoid entirely of dialogue, the short film conjures an immensely conflicted realm of domesticity simply by way of visuals and performances. It is marked by abuse, addiction, violence and the adverse consequences of the same on the relations that exist within this familial space. Denied a voice or agency within the structure, the wife watches quietly as her alcoholic husband puts her and their son through intense abuse and trauma on a daily basis. Outside the house, however, is a little shrubbery of roses, serving as mute spectators to the tragedy unfolding before them. As the boy waters them, the woman perhaps watches them from her window, and the husband destroys property while they stand witness, the story develops into its own, offering you a motif, ever present and silent, and yet, weaving the existence within the four walls of the house into a whole.

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