A few excellent short films that are now available for streaming are part of the film festival JioCinemas is presenting. Birha: The Journey Back Home, directed by Puneet Prakash, is one of the films on the schedule. This 100-minute short film, which was written by Hemant Singh, captures the intense desire for one’s soul to seek salvation as well as the urge to return to one’s native country.
With its arresting tone, timing, and composition, this gem of a short film—starring Rajit Kapoor and Manav Vij among others—leaves an enduring impact. Although there is little speech and what appears to be the most straightforward plot of any of the short films in the lineup, the touching father-son relationship presented stirs up feelings that have been suppressed for a long time. Nothing is forced, the movie moves at its own pace, and the transitions are so confidently made that the plot never veers off course.