Devi

India a land of goddesses and where the sacred and the profane coexist. A subtle poignant short film .. its devastating conclusion left me completely heartbroken.. The stark ugly truth about our society where over 1000 goddesses being worshipped and where an average of 90+ rapes occur daily (one every 16 min)! The staggering statistic that 68% of perpetrators go unpunished exposes the dark underbelly of our society.

While the film's brief duration limited its potential, the strong cast and burning issue made a lasting impact. Although it felt like a missed opportunity for a more comprehensive exploration, the climax effectively compensated for this.

After 7:00 u will realise it's not ordinary, there's something different and slowly slowly you will be just awed 🤐🙄😶😶

Following the recent wave of short films addressing feminist (or maybe humanist) issues, such as the brilliant Juice (2018) starring Shefali Shah, Devi is one good piece, although it could have been even better. Set in one house during one continuous 13-minute episode, the film introduces a group of women who've been staying in this apartment, which apparently serves as a metaphor for afterlife. All of them, of varied ages and sociocultural backgrounds, are bound together by virtue of them being women, and to be precise, women who've been through abuse, mostly sexual, but not necessarily so, as it appears. The film presents their stories through all their differences in both attitude and mentality, and it does so really well, capturing their disputes and tiny conflicts so as to show how the little that unites them is far greater than what divides them.

Devi is a strong commentary on a society where female deities are worshipped but women are much less respected. The film is symbolically impactive, but the abundance of characters might have been better resolved had some of it been just a little less suggestive of what had happened and actually given more information. Here too we have a wonderful group of actresses, brilliantly led by Kajol, who is palpably vulnerable and distraught. Much of the tension is courtesy her, as she dictates the mood with her strong presence. Obviously Neena Kulkarni is next to marvel at given a showy role but a remarkably realistic performance, and Neha Dhupia acts well against her. Mukta Barve is very impressive, and all the rest of them do their bits part exceedingly well, helping create a nice prologue to the moving ending and the final, explanatory credits.

I usually don't write reviews. But this one.. it's a shame living in a country where women are not safe, leve women, even 7 months daughter is also not safe.

Worth watching. No words.

That's how a short can be made. Priyanka Banerjee has done a great job. A tale of nine women navigating through an unusual sisterhood thrust upon them by circumstances. So, what are those circumstances, for that you have to give your 13 minutes to it. A Must Watch With Brilliant Performances by Ensemble Cast.