The short films opens with the planning of a conspiracy to overthrow the British. The year is 1947, Indians are languishing under the colonial rule and it's time to take matters in their own hands. To achieve the same, youngsters from across India have collected in a remotely located hut. While the plan is hatched in shadows, faces soon become brighter and clearer as it seems to be taking a more defined form. After fighting the darkness of internal conflict, as is also conveyed by literal momentary darkness on screen, the lamp is lit and the path is found once again. The film, which is set in a time when leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, Subhash Chandra Bose and Jawaharlal Nehru were at the forefront of the freedom struggle, also offers a critique of the nationalist movement. Finally, The Insignificant closes with an interesting thought - all representatives of different parts of the country want freedom, but is that all that they truly want?

The Insignificant | Short Film of the Day

Working in the film industry as a costume designer, the protagonist, Aarti finds herself in a sore, difficult position as the caretaker of both, a paralysed husband, and an incompetent father. The father barely helps Aarti with the daily chores and is reluctant to contribute to Arvind’s care, convinced that his recovery is beyond the realm of possibility. 
Meanwhile, Aarti toils throughout the day, balancing both professional and personal duties. In a later conversation, the father reveals his disapproval of Aarti's choice to still support her husband, and therefore denying herself the opportunity to live in comfort as a homemaker. Where there is a disconnect between the duo regarding true independence and love for cinema and embroidery, a safe space of understanding and shared interest lies with the husband for the protagonist. Through the progression of all of these events, the film weaves an endearing story of unconditional support and a determined struggle.

Kasuti | Short Film Nominee

‘Yellow’, though conjures a world of lightness and energy in its title, is far from it in its intentions, and deliberately so. Employing animation and the consequent imagery it presents, clearly exhibiting investment of thought, the film tells a story about a little boy, Hari, and the many ways in which his childhood dreams and desires are shackled. 
Despite paintings and pictures on public walls, denoting an independent India, the reality is far from it. The storytelling, and the visuals it’s coupled with, remain notable strengths of the film which, in turn, emphasise the importance of education, and the devastating effects of cyclical poverty and financial trauma that gets passed down from one generation to another.

Yellow | Short Film Nominee

The short film invokes a conversation around the plight of ordinary citizens in a country like India which is drowning in red-tapism and bureaucracy. As an old man struggles to get official work done from a police station, he raises the overarching question - what is his identity? The film uses poetry as a significant tool to further drive this question home. While the forefathers of independent India might have had a particular reality in mind for the nation, why are we still far from it?

Pehchaan | Short Film Nominee

The film has a positive message to share with the viewer - one about overcoming darkness and finding the strength within to achieve the same. It is the story of a man who lives with blindness. The narrative locates him in the reality of a pandemic-stricken world where he is by himself with no other help and support available. After establishing the premise, the rest of the film becomes about him navigating this new reality. However, will he find it in him, the strength he has always harboured inside, to overcome this seemingly endless darkness?

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