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First, the Recap:
Facing up to a blatantly unhealthy yet still tenuous, delicate situation will never be an easy road to traverse. In the context of a marriage going horribly wrong, there is still the considerations of all involved, more often than not, the presence and inclusion in the mix of a child and their well-being. With all the pressures associated with decisions that beg to be followed through on, can one find the fortitude to finally say “ENOUGH!!”. Punjabi immigrant Kamal (Ami Sheth) confronts the ever-growing hostility from her belligerent husband Jagdeep (Nitin Madan). When their son Armaan (Jude Michael Rodricks) becomes a target of the unfolding circumstances, Kamal must stand up and make the only choice possible–they must leave. However, even if this is the best option, life without a home can become even more challenging, yet also potentially bring about the catalysts of hope, opportunity, and change.
Next, my Mind:
Sunday afternoon marked the U.S. Premiere of this 20-minute indie short film project screened as part of the Women’s Shorts Programming at the 2022 DFW SAFF sponsored by Toyota USA and hosted by Jingo Media Founder/Festival Director Jitin Hingorani and Artistic Director Ambica Dev and provided through writer/director/producer Gurinder J. Singh, making an impression on this critic for its presenting of a story that is both unsettling yet ultimately inspiring, a very similar feel I experienced with the documentary “Kicking Balls“. Now granted, even though the latter effort mentioned there was based in real life, this short, despite being a work of fiction, not only comes across in a very tangibly believable manner, but very much could echo more true circumstances in this world that occur as depicted than we realize, wish to hear about, or even acknowledge, which again lends that initially tragic air to events before making a point to try and turn the atmosphere around.
Taking place during the COVID-19 pandemic and centering on a young wife who has tried in vain to weather a crushingly abusive marriage along with the couple’s son who ends up in the middle of it as well, the narrative doesn’t remotely shy away from its portrayals of the physical, emotional, and mental torment borne out of the horror that is domestic violence. What makes this subject so deeply necessary to convey, as hard as it is to stomach, is that we should NEVER grow “tired” of being aware of it, its nature, and more so to heed the call to action and have further awareness about it so that more steps can be taken to bring those who experience it, whether present or past, out of harm’s way, help restore their lives, give them hope, and the better chances for ideally being offered a better opportunity to see a future ahead. It seems even more important to see this all come about when, as does so sadly happen, children are involved who are the additional faces of total innocence in these cases.
However, what I then appreciate about this film is that it takes this baseline premise, gives it an initial resolution, but then leads the story into a new depiction of challenge the characters must face and then explore precisely how they will endeavor to pursue sustainability and basic existence when everything they’ve had is now gone. It reveals a concept of how exiting from one harsh circumstance may NOT always lead to immediate betterment or any at all, and that is a sobering actuality to present here given the already weighty thematic content we’re given to absorb. Yet, it is within this newly created air of tension, uncertainty, desperation, and hopelessness that the narrative finds its second wind and takes the character’s journey in a fresh direction that lends viable, legitimate, realistic forays into the fortitude and strength of the human spirit to discover the means to persevere, even in the most difficult of instances, and that is an overall message we NEED to hear, more so in this contemporary world so filled with negativity on multiple levels.
Add to this a finale that SO adeptly places an emphatic, everything comes around eventually moral lesson to the film and it’s a stirring portrait of moving on from the past that DOES leave an impact on you as the viewer. Having last seen Sheth in the context of the SAFF arena through 2019’s NYC SAFF short film “Agency” as well as through her recurring role as Afreen in the excellent, but now-ended TV Series “Blindspot”, it was a pleasure to see her back in short film through her role here as Kamal, a physically and emotionally battered wife who’s initially continued to maintain her marriage to a harshly abusive husband until a final catalyst involving their son pushes her to make the long-coming choice to leave with their child. Yet, in doing so, all systems of support (even though ugly) are now gone, and she learns quickly that having nothing and nowhere to go isn’t necessarily the best road to travel for them either.
Yet, in it all, she works like a great mother does to make ends meet and heads towards a path that could see her and her son find newfound peace, provision, and satisfaction. As I indicated earlier, it’s a story filled with so many ups and downs, a volatility that’s very real in its delivery, and throughout the film, Sheth displays a grounded maturity and poise that sells you on the character so beautifully and credibly through her acting. Rodricks presents himself with a solidly performed degree of acting skill through his role as Armaan, a younger boy very involuntarily thrust into the bitter truths associated with domestic abuse that cause his mother to take him away from the situation, even as he himself was already questioning why it had not already happened before. As he likewise gets to learn about how life isn’t any easier outside of what they’ve known, but also may be an unexpected voice of reason and opportunity as he and his Mom fight for their situation to improve.
Madan plays scene stealer here through his appearance as the source of all of Kamal and Amaan’s troubles, Jagdeep, Kamal’s drunk and abusive husband who more than feels he’s justified in his treatment of her, obviously having most likely threatened what might happen should she try and leave. Madan infuses Jagdeep with such a towering, forceful, and outright menacing demeanor that fits the story to a “T” and its a total credit to Madan’s acting prowess in creating one of those “we love to HATE this guy!!” styles of character here. Samrat Chakrabarti plays a key part in his role as Dr. Amit Banerjee, a soon to be former boss of Kamal’s who still tries his level best to be of assistance to her, even in spite of everything he knows has already been occurring in her now broken marriage. I simply loved Chakrabarti’s earnestness and genuine empathy as displayed through the character, and it honestly reminds us of why we need more people in this world like the kind soul the actor portrays so well here.
Additional appearances are made by Vick Krishna and Asha Devi as Gaurav and Nalina, a young couple whom Kamal has a vested interest in during the film’s final act along with Johnny Sparks, Shiro Kihagi, Sheree M. Lewis, and Qavi Patel Singh. So, in total, “Rising Lotus” successfully and succinctly makes its potent statements about fleeing overt adversity, overcoming the odds, realizing the need others have for aid when shared experience is made known, and still most imperatively, the recognition that the specter of domestic violence is very much alive and needs to be addressed and ended whenever and wherever possible. Period.
As always, this is all for your consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!
