Guwahati News Desk: Naoka movie review: A short film showcasing a balance between the world of illusions and reality, with words used that pierce deep into the audience’s minds.
The short film Naoka (to be illusions!! dying and lies!!) written by Indranil Gayan and directed by Arindam Barooah, recently released in 2021, represents how the human life is a combination of both reality and illusion, and how it is our perspective that does the final judgement of what is real and what is not. Naoka’s brilliancy is effectively represented in its use of the black and white colour scheme that carefully sets the tone for the entire film. The sound of the crickets during the nightime, shows how silent the world is around the two protagonists of the film who are shown to be engaged in a conversation about art and culture and its relation to their own world. The film comprises of three chapters, where each chapter portrays a different story discussion related to the three prominent masters from three different fields of Europe. The first chapter is related to Franz Kafka (Literature) who himself was recognized for his absurd stories fused with realism, second chapter is related to Beethoven (Music) who is considered to be one of the greatest composers of innovative tunes which reflected his inner emotions, and the third chapter is related to Salvador Dali (Painting), with reference to his most famous painting ‘The Persistence of Memory’ (1931), which is one of the most recognized works of Surrealism.
Regarding the cast of Naoka, the protagonist (boy) played by Partha Pran Dutta, is seen to imbibe the personalities and traits of these three masters, by presenting impressions of living himself as them. The other protagonist (girl) played by Bidisha Kashyap, acts as a bridge between the boy’s illusion space and audience’s reality sense. In a way, she is seen balancing the chaotic tone between what is real and what is not.
Moreover, it is the deliberate use of the black and white cinematic colours that has added a sense of solemnity, severity and weight to the words uttered by the two protagonists.
Naoka’s Cast & Crew
Direction & Editing: Arindam Barooah
Story, Screenplay & Dialogues: Indranil Gayan
Cinematography: Rishika Baruah & Bhaskar Jyoti Dutta
Colourist: Rishika Baruah
Sound Design: Abhijit Chetia
Poster Design: Kunal Borah
Still Photographer: Abhinob Phukan
Credits Score: Dimple Saikia
Assistant Director: Anisha Dutta
Cast: Bidisha Kashyap & Partha Pran Dutta
Acknowledgment: Priyanka Gogoi, Rwitu Raj Gogoi, Aparajita Sharma & Papu Das
Furthermore, Naoka has succeeded in achieving several accolades & recognitions including Award of Excellence in Creativity at 7th Art Independent International Film Festival, Trivandrum, Kerala; Award at Rameshwaram International Film Festival, Tamil Nadu, India; Lead Actor Honorable Mention in a Short Film & Art Direction Honorable Mention in a Short Film at South Film and Arts Academy Festival, Chile; Critic’s Choice Award (Best Indian Short Film) at TEKKA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL, Singapore; Honourable Mention Award (Best Indian Short Film) at Aiyan Film Awards, Chennai, India; Special Mention Award (Best Indian Short Film) at International Film Festival of Andaman and Nicobar, Port Blair, India; Special Mention Award at Madras Independent Film Festival, Chennai, India; Official Selection at Golden Jury International Film Festival (GJIFF), Mumbai, India; Official Selection at Rieti & Sabina Film Festival, Rome, Italy & Official Selection at International Film Festival of Sriganganagar-India, Rajasthan.
To conclude, the team of Hello Guwahati congratulates Naoka and its entire team for their tremendous efforts and amazing achievements and further wishes the best to the team for their future endeavors.