BREVITY BANK
Bollywood ’ s Haiku Bloom
Crisp , nuanced and noticeable , short films are much in vogue
TINY TROVES ( Clockwise from top left ) Ahalya , Juice , Chutney , Anukul , by Prachi Pinglay-Plumber in Mumbai
FOR Nagraj Manjule , making Pawsacha Nibandha ( An Essay of the Rain ) was a long overdue dream , one that was realised only after he had made Sairat . Why a short film after a phenomenal full-length hit , one may well ask . Such interrogations could be missing the point completely . “ I think short films are a completely different language ,” says FTII alumnus Payal Kap adia , whose 13-minute short film , Afternoon Clouds , competed at Cannes last year . “ They are perhaps closer to poetry than the longer format . It is like comparing a poem to a novel rat her than a short story . The approach is totally different . I don ’ t really see it as a means to an end but an end in itself .”
So , this could be one of the reasons why , despite his record-breaking success in the feature film format , Manjule chose a short film to tell his next story . Also , even though short-film is still an intimate genre — with limited outreach and viability in the strict commercial sense , the landscape has unmistakably opened up . A blossoming of film-festival culture
across the globe coupled with the coming up of digital platforms that showcase diverse content has changed the scene .
In recent years , Indian short films such as Chutney , Ahilya , Chhuri , Anukul , Girgit , Khujli , Kheer and The Thought of You have explored various themes , ranging from robots , to kink , to marital discord . Several such films have been travelling
“ We are completely agnostic to genre . The only criterion is the strength of the plot ,” says Pallavi , co-founder of HumaraMovies . com .
the world , from festival to festival . A few of them have even passed perhaps the most legit viability test today — going viral .
It appears that a number of directors , actors and producers in India are doing what they can to nurture the format . The section for shorts in the Mumbai Academy of Moving Images ( MAMI ) film festival too received great response this year . A significant change is also in store : there are talks of international broadcasters bringing short films to TV in India through a new channel . Hopefully , you ’ ll be able to watch Manjule ’ s Pawsacha Nibandha , which also won a National award this year , on TV soon . “ The film comes from my experience of the rain . I am glad that it has rec eived national recognition with the award . It was made on a much bigger budget than an average short film ,” says Manjule .
He mentions that nothing major had happened with his previous short film Pistulya ( also a national award winner ). He is yet to hand over Pawsacha Nibandha to any of the digital platforms and is contemplating more festival rounds , “ but I am not averse to any medium or any format ,” he adds . He speaks about how he just had to make this one : “ The story had stayed with me for so many years , I had
62 OUTLOOK 18 June 2018