“A boy of 8 years is a garbage cleaner and his mother falls to a coma. During the puja days, the boy sells garbage and earns 150 rupees to buy a saree and sweets. The boy sees the dream of how he will survive with his mother.” (Official)
“Two World” review is part of the Submit Your Film Initiative
Satyajit Das's (“Paintings in the Dark“) new short film “Two World”, continues the director's exploration of the more harrowing aspects of Indian society, this time turning his lens on the subject of childhood poverty. An uncomfortable one to approach, but one of importance in creating empathy and change within a culture that can overlook the unfortunate. It is within tackling such subject matter that Das finds the most success, with the image of the boy caring for his invalid mother guaranteed to make a statement towards positive change. Unfortunately, outside of the strong and well framed message, the film has one major flaw that holds it back.
The biggest offender of the short film lies in the sound design, which is both abhorrent and offensive to the senses. Underscored by loud overly dramatic music, the score does not as much compliment the film as drown it in a misplaced attempt to elicit a stronger emotional response. Additionally, the only reprise from the score, via capturing the sounds of people by the train tracks, contains two moments of deafening horns. These few moments are loud enough to both scare and blow out the eardrums of anyone experiencing the film with headphones. Ultimately, It is unfortunate that the sound design is handled so poorly in the face of a competent narrative.
Audio issues aside, the rest of the presentation is complimentary and it can be said that Das has a keen eye for visuals and capturing human emotion. The delivery may not always be entirely clean, and there is still room for improvement, but the care and consideration to visuals is apparent in the directors approach.
Given that “Two World” is executed almost entirely by Sajit Das, one can't help to get the impression that future projects would be better served with some degree of collaboration, allowing the strengths of others to compliment the director's vision. A sentiment largely echoed in the unfortunate sound design which blighted both this and “Paintings in the Dark”.
As it stands, Das feels like a diamond in the rough, with fleeting glimpses of a clear and creative vision. Unfortunately, it is difficult to predict what can untap the full potential of the work, particularly when bombarded with glaring errors in execution that separate the viewer from the intended experience.
