INDIAN NARRATIVE SHORTS IN COMPETITION

Based in a small village in Kutch, India; 10-year-old Mukti wishes to swim in the newly filled lake, after a drought spanning for years. A seemingly simple wish turns to an unexpected discovery about himself, which causes him to question himself, the stigma around it, and his wish to swim in the lake.

It is the story of a gay son who due to the obligations of social stigma decides to move out of the country and disconnects himself from a family with the fear of disapproval of his sexuality. When he comes back home due to his father’s demise, post rituals, he finds a letter in his father’s closet addressed to him. The letter unfolds the narrative of the father’s love and an explanation towards the odds of their relationship & unpleasant memories in the past.

On a cloudy melancholy evening Myra a visual artist experiences an overwhelming surge of emotions. Hinged between past and present she tries to make sense of reality around her. Deeply drenched in fantasy and memories she reflects on her relationship with Surbhi.

During the 2002 Godhra riots in Gujarat, India, 30-year-old Samir, while cruising, finds Rafiq, a Muslim boy, hiding in the bushes. Being chased by a Hindu mob, Rafiq follows Samir, who manages to smuggle Rafiq into his workshop. Annoyed by Rafiq’s refusal to Samir’s advances, Samir throws Rafiq out of his house, only later to find a terrified Rafiq who has managed to sneak back in. Can Samir save Rafiq from the angry mob waiting outside?

A new tenant in his home, the enigmatic Pankaj intrigues Rahul stirring within him a yearning he doesn’t quite understand yet. But there’s trouble brewing when Pankaj’s caste becomes known to the family. Pankaj, at odds with his feelings for a guy that are twice tabooed, struggles to keep a roof over his head. Conflicted by his growing love for a man his family considers beneath them, Rahul must decide what truly matters – age old prejudices or the joy of first love.