The six Indian short films, nominated for ‘Best Short (Narrative)’ segment of the prestigious 21st New York Indian Film Festival 2021, were recently revealed on their social media handle. The film festival will be streamed virtually from June 4, 2021, to June 13, 2021, on the MovieSaints online platform.
Besides, nominations for other categories including ‘Best Director’, ‘Best Short (Documentary)’, ‘Best Actor’, ‘Best Documentary’, ‘Best Child Actor’, ‘Best Actress’ and ‘Best Film’ were also disclosed.
The six short narrative films selected for NYIFF 2021 were ‘Salana Jalsa’, B.Selvi and Daughters’, ‘Tasher Ghawr’, ‘Sonsi’, ‘Sunday’, and ‘The Miniaturist of Junagadh’. Here is a brief rundown about these short films.
‘Salana Jalsa’ (Annual Day) is a short film by director Pratik Thakare and produced by Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute. As the title suggests, the film is about a high school’s annual day function with three spirited teenagers and their attempt to conquer the day like there is no tomorrow.
While ‘B.Selvi and Daughters’ revolves around a fifty-year-old woman who aspires to be an entrepreneur with support from her daughter(s). The film has been written and directed by Drishya.
The next title ‘Tasher Ghawr’ is a Hoichoi short film featuring talented actress Swastika Mukherjee and directed by Sudipto Roy. The film is about an upper-middle-class housewife residing in Kolkata who is struck between the world around her and the one within her.
Then, ‘Sonsi’ centers around a young girl who ventures alone into the forest all by herself, when, one day, the mysterious timekeeper and her shadow bird do not come. This short film has been directed by Savita Singh.
The short film ‘Sunday’, directed by Arun Fulara, revolves around a middle-aged man and his weekly visit to the nearby barbershop. The film features Shrikant Yadav, Prakash Joshi, and Shreyas Chougule in prominent roles.
And last but certainly not the least is the short film ‘The Miniaturist of Junagadh’. The film features veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah and Rasika Duggal, amongst others. Set amidst the backdrop of the partition, the film is about an old miniature painter (played by Naseeruddin Shah), who is forced to sell his ancestral home in India and move to Karachi along with his family. But apparently, there is more to the plot. We would have to watch the film to know the whole story.
These six wonderful short films are amongst many other Indian films that will be streamed (for US residents) during the upcoming New York Indian Film Festival (from June 4-13) at the official website of the MovieSaints platform.