A viewer should go to Gadhedo unprepared and unsuspecting and allow themselves to be impressed and entertained by a wonderful short film. The story is of a small village where the local teacher lounges and relaxes at the cost of his pupils' education. As Monday becomes 'Monde' and week becomes 'weak', it is not hard to determine the direction his students are headed in. Add to all this his eccentric, witless landlord, and the drama of the film unfolds in the most unpredictable and engaging manner. The film is unique and refreshing in the style it adopts to tell its story, a folk tale, as it states at the start. It has several moments of brilliance as the viewer tries to pin it down to a genre - comedy, drama, thriller? What happens when a simpleton decides to pay a huge sum to his devious tenant to turn his donkey into a human? The consequences are hilarious, surprising and saddening - all at the same time, allowing Gadhedo to be a skilled and sophisticated piece of art.

Gadhedo | Vikrant Massey | Short Film of the Day

Made as part of the Start A Little Good series by Hindustan Lever, the ad film by Little Lamb Films goes to show how far a simple act can go in saving the environment. Drawing attention to the very urgent issue of water shortage, the film shows the bleakness of the situation in rural India. While it's often easy to slip into a state of indifference, often induced by the comfort of our privileges, at the cost of sounding preachy, it's important to remind ourselves that life is much harder for a large part of the Indian population. What we take for granted is a very rare and sought after necessity for many, and we can do our bit to change this with only a little awareness of environmental concerns.

The Shower | Short Film of the Day

The short film aims to invoke a relevant comment on the various kinds of discrimination prevalent in society, in general, and the role caste has to play in this, in particular. It's approach is marked by brevity, an element that works in its favour. The scene is of a village where it seems two brothers are wrapping up work on their farm before moving on to the next task. Handheld shots remain dominant in the narrative, and are further tied with interesting editing to drive home the intensity of events that come to unfold. The film offers insight into the devastating effects of the inherent discrimination against a community and the consequent violence it often leads to. The idea is foregrounded in a significant manner by portraying how the situation in itself might have been a completely inane one, but its misinterpretation due to one's own vision coloured by bias, led to ruinous, irreversible results.

Stone Castle | Short Film Nominee

The thematic preoccupation of the narrative is something small and mundane, and yet, for the characters involved, it is an issue of extreme importance. That perhaps is how life is constituted too, by small moments that may seem trivial in the larger scheme of things, but it is precisely these moments that come to define and comprise our lived reality. The narrative locates itself in a rural pocket of the country where, one day, some catfish is captured for food by a man and shared with those around him. However, the activity is not as simple as it sounds, and soon becomes a topic of great discussion as well as derision by the rest of the community. The film offers a convincing and authentic glimpse into the daily affairs of the village, and the several social equations within which they come to take form. The storytelling exhibits potential, even though the cinematography could have gained from a little more stability in the visuals. Overall, however, the film remains a notable attempt at sharing its story and intentions with the audience.

The Catfish | Short Film Nominee

When the everyday, lived reality of a regular village in Rajasthan becomes too overwhelming, young Kaaliyaa takes refuge in his reveries. After having heard the stories of a caped superhero from a fellow-villager, who colours his tales with all kinds of hues and shades of city-life, our protagonist finds himself in the heart of a daydream about his own cape and mask. The film is endearing and honest in its attempts to shares its story with the audience, to whom it provides an equally likeable character, along with noteworthy visuals. While our protagonist might struggle to register dull facts about an era gone by, will he truly find a safe refuge in the stories of Kaaliyaa Man?

Kaaliyaa Man | Short Film Nominee

In the spirit of celebrating the agrarian way of life, the short film takes the viewer into a classic romance where the father forbids the union of a man with his daughter for he does not have a job in the city. The film uses comical moments to further drive its message home. Absolutely refusing to budge in the face of the requests of the male lead, the father has called a suitor for his daughter from the city. Our protagonist is now bound by a fixed duration to prove his worth. First, he attempts to move to the city, but realises that's not where his heart truly lies. Once this realisation has been achieved, only one way remains for him to win the father, to prove to him his own worth as well as that of rural life. However, will he be able to achieve all of this in the limited time he has?

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