Zindagi inShort is an Indian Hindi Drama Anthology web series comprising 7 stories. It stars Divya Dutta, Neena Gupta, Sanjay Kapoor, Swaroop Sampat, Deepak Dobiryal, Isha Talwar, Bijou Thaangjam, and others and was released on 22nd February 2021 on Netflix.
The first short is Pinni directed by Tahira Kashyap Khurrana. Starring Neena Gupta with a talent for making Pinni ke Laddoos, is the sweetest story here. She is passionate about her work, making laddoos, and delivers it through speed post if necessary. She is madly doing her job, preparing everything for her husband, from tea to breakfast. She is busy on phone calls taking orders but what is missing in her life is 'appreciation'. She has everything but still alone and Tahira did an excellent job in portraying this simple yet affecting story without going overboard. Sadly it's the story of every house and women and mothers who are not getting any credit for their hard works. It works as an eye-opener and saying about performances, Neena Gupta's nuanced performance is the strength and the backbone of this story otherwise it would have hardly create impact.
Directed by Punarvasu Naik, Sleeping Partner is hard-hitting among all. Beena (Divya Dutta) is stuck in an abusive marriage with Sharad (Sanjay Kapoor). Everything changes for her when she meets Ravish (Jitin Gulati), a friend of her husband, and Ravish becomes her sleeping partner, what happens next is that Ravish tries to exploit her but seeing Beena standing for herself, is truly an amazing climax. This story tackles numerous exploitations women are facing, marital rape, domestic violence, and whatnot, and the director Punarvasu Naik exceptionally covers such serious topics in mere 23 minutes and that too beautifully. Divya Dutta is a fire here, her portrayal of Beena is breathtaking. Whereas Sanjay Kapoor and Jitin Gulati are equally convincing in their parts.
Sunny Side Upar by Vijayeta Kumar follows a doctor Kavya (Rima Kallingal) who is very much committed to her work and doesn't have even a single free day to take holiday or even a free time to call her parents. One day, she gets a call from her brother who says that he has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. She calls her mother and her mother says that this is what she has trying to tell her but she's not picking her phone even. What was Rytasha Rathore doing here? Her character seems redundant. Though it is clear what Vijayeta Kumar is trying to say the problem is that nothing here clicks. So many characters, even Nakuul Mehta are there as Kavya's boyfriend to whom she keeps texting. But in a short time, it could have been kept simple and smooth and here sadly everything is so hurried, it flies without making an impact. Not bad but not good too.
Nano So Phobia by Rakesh Sain revolves around an old woman Mrs. Balsara (Swaroop Sampat), a lonely and friendless woman who was once attacked and robbed by a dwarf man on blade point and that fear has been there in her head for years. But when she is attacked by the same person and somehow she manages to get out of the house to find help, everyone ignores her but what happens after that...unpredictable and wow!! Sriram Raghavan has also been the credit and you will be shocked by the end. Fun and unbelievable short and Swaroop Sampat shines throughout.
Chhaju Ke Dahi Bhalle by Gautam Govind Sharma is about a young boy Amrik (Manjot Singh) and a girl Amreen (Aisha Ahmed), they both meet at Tinder and their constant texting and interactions develop into love. They finally make a plan to meet, in front of Chhaju Ke Dahi Bhalle, but the twist on where this episode ends is unforgettable. A lovely and charming love story ending on a heartbreaking note is saddening but it's good to see both the actors here, Manjot Singh and Aisha Ahmed, both are in good form.
Thappad by Vinay Chawwal is set in a rural area where a 10-year-old boy Bablu, a habit of reading Raj Comics, teaches her elder sister to stand for herself and against those bullies. Here Piyush Puty's camera work is truly amazing, showing everything up to Bablu's height, and not above that, just like we don't see Tom's owner face in Tom and Jerry, it is like that. Such a brilliant technique of filmmaking and camera work, but the climax is a little dramatic nonetheless it is one of the best among the seven.
Swaaha by Smrutika Panigrahi is a spicy short starring Deepak Dobriyal and Isha Talwar as a married couple. In a wedding function, Kapil (Deepak Dobriyal) finds out that his wife is cheating on him. Even her wife is on fire, she's admitting everything, that's the funniest scene, but the shocking is yet to come and another twist is also there. This is purely acting-oriented dark comedy and both the lead actors are spectacular in every aspect. How their happy married life comes to 'swaaha' at last is all about this one.
Overall, Zindagi inShort has some really beautiful stories, that are satisfying and fulfilling which we don't get in many other anthology films. Among the seven, Sleeping Partner and Thappad excel whereas Pinni, Swaaha, and Chhaju Ke Dahi Bhalle were also great. To appreciate others, to relax even in grave situations, and to stand against bullies, Guneet Monga has a plethora of issues and relevant themes to show and Zindagi inShort creates that impact. Released last year on Flipkart Video is now available on Netflix.
Rating:- 3.5/5
Now on Netflix.
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