11-minutes of Silence that Speaks Volumes; “Meal” releases on various OTT platforms

After traveling to over 50 international film festivals and grabbing eight awards in several categories, the 11-minute short film ‘Meal’ starring the internationally acclaimed actor from Assam, Adil Hussain is now available on the OTT platforms.

The short film is written and directed by Abhiroop Basu, a seasoned director who has earned two consecutive selections for the prestigious Cannes Film Festival. Adil Hussain shares the screen with Ratnabali Bhattacharjee, Arun Mukherjee, and Avishek Jain. 

While giving a short take on the film Meal to VibesMojo, Hussain stated that “It’s a breakdown of a dysfunctional lower-middle-class family caused by poverty and lack of love.” The USP of the film is the fact that it has no dialogues in it. The silent treatment allows the viewers to realise the fact that interactions need not always be spoken. Interaction can happen through body language and just by sensing feelings, emotions and actions which is showcased in the short film.

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No wonder that this engaging film was the official entry for the Oscar Qualifying 44th Odense International Film Festival, Denmark. ‘Meal’ was also the only Indian entry and was among the 121 selected films in the competition which had a world-wide submission of approximately 4000 films. The short film was also one of the winning short films in 2019’s Jio MAMI- The 21st Mumbai International Film Festival. And like a cherry atop a sundae, the film was also the judge’s favorite.

The film can now be enjoyed on MUBI India after which Hotstar will also play it.