Film festivals primarily open doors to incredible opportunities and provide a platform mostly for emerging filmmakers to exhibit their creations to a wider and varied audience. My fourth outing titled Deep Fridge has been doing the festival rounds. After screenings at the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) followed by Ajanta Ellora International Film Festival (India Focus Section), Pune International Film Festival (Indian Cinema Section), International Film Festival of Thrissur (Indian Panorama Section) and in the competitive section at the Third Eye International Film Festival and Bengaluru International Film Festival, the latest stop for Deep Fridge was the prestigious Habitat Film Festival held in Delhi.

Habitat has always been very special, more because my debut feature film Abyakto was screened there in 2019. That time it was a full house and I got a standing ovation for the film. This was my second time at this festival and the audience here is very educated.

Deep Fridge chronicles the journey of a couple with a child after their judicial separation. Divorces can be tricky and tough. Our human brains have evolved to hone a drive for love and partnership that lasts just long enough until one is predisposed. In Deep Fridge, both Swarnava and Mili are victims of this vicious, prejudiced idea of a perfectly happy marriage. Will they be able to seek closure and see things with more clarity in an effort to build a guilt-free future for both of them separately which is fair to their only child Tatai? The fridge plays the third lead in this narrative... a rock-solid chunk of emotions buried deep inside the freezer, it not only serves as a metaphor for Mili’s inner demons but also a friend in need and an escape for Swarnava time and again.

Deep Fridge was very well appreciated with almost a houseful show on a Monday evening and the entire team got very good feedback, especially my actors Abir Chatterjee, Tnusree C and Anuradha Mukherjee and also my DoP Supratim BBhol and music composer Soumya Rit. The audience loved the overall treatment and subtlety of the narrative.

Post-screening, the Q&A session went for almost an hour inside the auditorium and another half an hour outside. It was so so enriching.

The cherry on the cake was that Taslima Nasrin came to watch the film and expressed her views and gave her feedback; she also hoped that I do better films in the near future. Furthermore, she complimented me as a ray of hope during this current phase of Bengali cinema.

I also met actress Mita Vashisht at the festival and we started a conversation regarding films in general and of course Deep Fridge, though due to other commitments she couldn’t watch the film. She also conveyed her desire to act in a Bangla film. People from various parts of India, predominantly film lovers, gathered at the festival to watch different types of content. The energy, the venue, the climate and everything around, the overall vibe of the festival was so dreamy and enigmatic.

I also got to watch the ending and attend the Q&A session of the Tamil film titled Kaadhal Enbadhu Podhuudamai by filmmaker Jayaprakash Radhakrishnan. Being a foodie, I thoroughly enjoyed the amazing food at the Habitat Club... their continental cuisine is worth dying for.

I had an amazing time at the Habitat Centre and I am sure that I’ll come back here either with a film or just for the same experience again.