Review: Baartalaap (2025)

Baartalaap, a short film by Dhruva J. Bordoloi, portrays an aligned-hearted love story. It emphasizes the crossroads people tend to take in life, and how these paths tend to diverge away from our close ones and at times through chance encounters converge together. These moments almost feel alive where our actions and thoughts get intertwined with words and silence. It is indeed a blissful moment in our lives, one that brings a smile to our faces and could very well be our story, too.

Jhanabi is a teacher who is already late for class and her stalled scooter leads her to an old friend Ananta from her small town. On noticing that Jhanabi is stuck, Ananta kindly offers her a lift, and as the drive progresses, they reminisce about times spent together. This brings to light some of the heartwarming and slightly troubling moments in their lives. As they meet later in the day, old wounds of abandonment that Jhanabi suffered in the past start resurfacing and put their short meeting to the test. The film delicately tackles the question of whether this brief moment could help heal the scars of the past or whether it will drive them further apart. 

Baartalaap is a film where the visual storytelling is as powerful as the dialogue or, rather, where the visual storytelling speaks more eloquently. The smooth transition between the characters' emotive worlds- one built by the cinematography of Brojen Baruah and Dhruva J. Bordoloi is impressive. The close-ups of Jhanabi's expressions or Ananta's expressive reaction communicate volumes, sometimes even better than words. Adding to the triumph of the visual storytelling are the quaint little setting, a nondescript restaurant where the couple have a cup of tea, and the sunlit wide green field where they strike up a conversation under the shade of a tree.  

The two lead characters played by Jatindra Nath and Bidisha Devi steer clear of melodramatic illustrations. Their faces, just below the surface of polite smiles, form the perfect giveaway of repressed emotions, concealing them under an ambience of genial civility. The pair enters their roles embodying a sense of confidence and brushing grace minimally resembling life. There is nothing forced about the eagerness to talk with one another. Their discourse about our country's education system is effective and deeply felt, reflecting shared histories and unspoken equations. In several key moments, the film allows the emotion to flow freely, giving the actors space to portray the wide yet intimate story of life and love through the nuances of their facial expressions. Both the young actor designs the atmospheres around their roles carefully, and rebuild their relationship with honesty.

Baartalaap paints a tender story of connection, focusing on what makes a relationship genuine: the lingering glance, the natural connection, that natural liking between two people, and the treasured comfort of shared silence. It is a delicate film portraying the evolving, gentle intricacies of connection from youth into adulthood, offering a thoughtful meditation on how our relationships, whether fulfilling or not, shape us. Bordoloi's script and editing do justice to the experiences depicted in the film, which is its strength.