Arati Kadav has been in news for her film Cargo which recently released on Netflix. The film has received rave reviews, but today we bring to foray one of her other short films, The Time Machine, written and directed by her, and executively produced by Guneet Monga.
Contrary to common percpetion, Cargo isn’t Arati’s first venture into the world of sci-fi storytelling. Instead, her journey had begun with Time Machine, a 2016 short film.
In this coming of age film, 15-year-old Chetan (portrayed by Siddharth Menon) finds his calling in the world of futuristic science. His days go by imagining an alternative world to which he could travel only if he is able to invent the time machine.
The film’s arc takes us through Chetan’s dynamics with his family and his first love, Mishthy (portrayed by Twinkle Patel). There are moments in the film that make one ponder over the importance of family and friends.
When Chetan is visited by a man from the future, he has his moment of epiphany. He comes to terms with the importance of relationships which is far greater than any invention.
‘Time Machine’, it seems, has been used as a metaphor.
It is a gentle reminder to people to live in the present rather than finding ways to escape their realities into the realm of the unknown.
With a powerful performance coupled with lingering and frames within frames shots, mood-inducing lighting, and whimsical yet realistic production design, the short film is worth a watch on a packed weekday.
You can watch this film here.
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