‘Rabt’ is a beautiful story about an unexpected connection, an unlikely link between two very disparate characters, Manav, a worker for a company that sells caller tunes, and Dhananjay, an old man who lives in the hills with his disgruntled domestic worker. 

If the former is stuck in a dead-end job which leaves him little room to expand his true passion of music and singing, the latter deals with dementia. However, the similarity between the two characters remains their own respective emotional burdens that they quietly carry. From guilt and regret to hurt and disappointment, all of these emotions are painted on the canvas of the narrative without making it mawkish or maudlin. 

The writing of the film does a commendable job of discussing ideas of marriage, family, fidelity and relationships, and the many variables that continue to mold them indefinitely. The background score is especially complementary in supporting this conversation. All of it is handled with sincerity, ensuring that the end result of the film is a lovely, heartfelt story.

Rabt | Short Film Nominee

The short film is a lighthearted engagement with the several, complex dynamics of marriage, fidelity and relationships. The narrative is unpredictable and keeps the viewer guessing throughout. Adah Sharma is unforgettably effervescent, Ashwini Kalsekar delivers a powerful, yet sensitive portrayal of a housewife and Rajesh Sharma translates his character's hesitation, but also the quest for thrill, convincingly. The story is funny, emotional and vivacious in equal measure, supplemented with an upbeat score that further allows it to maintain its tone. As the three characters navigate their relationships with each other, who truly stands to gain from it? Perhaps all three, suggests the film.

Tindey | Adah Sharma, Rajesh Sharma, Ashwini Kalsekar | Short Film of the Day

Adopting the visual approach of found footage, the film exhibits skill and smoothness as it takes the viewer into its world. The story is essentially of a couple, Eby, and his pregnant wife Ann. Despite the care he still displays sometimes, Eby has lost interest in his marriage, resorting to a carnal affair with another woman. 

The weaving of events in the narrative keeps the viewer deeply involved in the fate of the couple, finally offering a story constructed with care and attention. Coupled with the dynamics and complexities of relationships, fidelity, and desire, along with the deep infestation of technology and smartphones in our lives, the storytelling too remains taut throughout.

Hey Ruh | Short Film Nominee

The film is the story of one night which is about to spiral completely out of control. Randeep has a special guest over, Kimi, and things are about to get intimate between the two when an unexpected visitor arrives. On the other side of the door is Rashmi, Randeep's former lover with whom the relationship has gone south very recently. In her wake follows Shilpa, another of Randeep's lovers, and then the adjacent neighbors, with an unsuspecting pizza delivery person in tow. 

With each character, a new element of chaos arrives, as the narrative continues to build tempo, as well as humorous tension. The film does not take itself too seriously, and occupies itself instead with generating humor and entertainment at the expense of the hapless characters before us. 


Defined throughout by slapstick comedy, there is an unexpected development lurking within the ruckus, and when it is finally realized in this house of complete disarray, in flat number 404, it takes the plot home in a complete manner.

Flat No 404 | Short Film Nominee

‘Armchair’ is a very sincere exploration of a single moment suspended within a circumstance of heightened tension, conflict, and eventually, heartbreak. It’s a regular day as Nisha and Anny sit with each other, doing chores and discussing issues at work, giving us a glimpse into everything that constitutes their daily life. However, soon Nisha realizes that the conversation is only one-sided with Anny absorbed in a state of agitation and anxieties of her own. 
The film presents a judicious use of the same space and a lean cast and crew to brings its intentions to life. In such an endeavor, rough edges and wrinkles are inevitable, but the writing helps to draw one’s attention away from them. This, in turn, allows the exploration of the said moment a balanced completion.

Armchair | Short Film Nominee

Society has a very fixed idea of male-female relationships, workplace equations between colleagues and the dynamics of marriage. Busting the same in a light-hearted manner is this short film. The film establishes a fun-loving character right at the start who is clearly quite popular with his colleagues. However, the bubble of this effervescent friendship is soon destroyed as he gets a call from a female colleague. Her husband seems to have taken offence at some pictures of theirs together after an office party and now he must meet him to clear the air. The plot develops in an unexpected manner and conveys a positive message. The performances hold potential and the writing indeed leaves the viewer with a few laughs by the end of it all.

Work Spouse | Short Film Nominee

The film gives a glimpse into an evening during which a lover's quarrel is unfolding. The woman continues to walk away, while her partner impatiently follows in tow, trying to defend something the viewer is not given full knowledge of. This is, of course, a deliberate decision by the film for it is not the hows and whys which are important, but the aftermath they have led to. Using its non-linear narrative, Woh Ek Pal allows the progression of two different set of events - one marked by the tiff, the other in which the woman, dressed in all white, is by herself at the beach. While several elements, the red balloon, for instance, the sea breeze and the beach, remain the same in both of them, one crucial aspect is starkly different in the latter, and it is precisely this which holds the most significant piece of information regarding the fate of the lovers. The film is made for an attentive audience, choosing to allow its ending a sense of vagueness. However, it would have benefited from a little more lucidity, simply to allow itself a wider reach in terms of storytelling.

Woh Ek Pal | Short Film Nominee

Marriages are complicated business, and those with a couple of years behind them, perhaps more so. The short film explores the same reality and engages with ideas of fidelity, companionship and love in the process. An atmosphere of unease is conjured within the first few moments of the film, ensuring the viewer that perhaps something darker than what they would have expected at the first glance from the story of this seemingly average looking household, awaits them. As the plot progresses to reveal all the murkiness that lurks within, it also weaves in poetry to concisely and lucidly communicate its intention to the audience. After all, is everything truly fair in love (and a domestic reality of long-term marital bonds)?

Pudiya | Short Film Nominee

If infidelity chooses to wriggle its way in between partners, it sometimes refuses to leave without causing a permanent change in the dynamics. While some may recover from the setback, for others it becomes the third component of their equation which is now changed in an irreversible manner. The short film pivots itself on the same premise and takes the viewer into one such instance. The plot, modelled on the short story The Suit by South African writer Can Themba, portrays how, when a husband catches his cheating wife red-handed, he refuses to express his dismay in any form of an emotional outburst. Instead, the infidelity takes the form of a perpetual presence in their marriage, quite literally. Additionally, while the parent text preoccupies itself with issues of race, the short film, comes to be associated with a class struggle between the members of the working class and those of the Indian upper-middle class. Though a little more fine-tuning of the overall product would have helped it to be more than what it already is, also an aspect that the team can gain from in their future projects, Haazri still exhibits an undeniable stillness and gravity of thought and approach that works notably to its advantage.

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