Festival-winning short Bhed, Bakri, Bhoot heads to YouTube on Sept 24
A jilted brass band player, a public restroom wall and a flood of angry graffiti sit at the heart of Indian short film 'Bhed, Bakri, Bhoot,' which gets its worldwide online release on Sept. 24.
Directors Abhishek Chaubey and Navdeep Singh are presenting the film, meaning they are lending their names to help it reach viewers. It will stream free on Oh Short Flips, the YouTube channel curated by filmmaker Anurag Kashyap, according to Variety.
The story starts small. A heartbroken musician scribbles a furious note about his ex on a toilet wall. Strangers see it. They add their own complaints, jokes and scribbles. One grudge becomes a chain reaction.
Writer-director Shivam Shankar built the short around that pile-up. He also co-produced it alongside Ranjan Singh and RG. The cast is led by Vandana Joshi, Prasanna Bisht, Apeksha Iyer, Naseem Mughal and Rishi Solanki.
It arrives online with a long festival run behind it. The film has played at the 29th Kurzfilmtage Winterthur, Roma Short Film Festival, Best of India Short Film Festival, IFFSA Toronto, Yellowstone International Film Festival, Tirana International Film Festival and Tokyo International Short Film Festival.
It has also collected prizes. The list includes second-best film at IDSFFK, best editing at the Tokyo International Short Film Festival, best short film at IFFSA Toronto and best Indian short film at Yellowstone, as reported by Variety.
Shankar trained in film direction at AAFT. He previously wrote for the Netflix series 'Saare Jahan Se Accha: The Silent Guardians.' This is his calling card as a director.
Oh Short Flips is still new. The channel gives short films a free YouTube window, with established filmmakers acting as presenters to draw attention.
'Bhed, Bakri, Bhoot' is its third title. It follows 'Incognito,' a thriller short by Ravi Muppa presented by Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane, which launched the channel in July. The second release was 'Bobby Beauty Parlour,' presented by Imtiaz Ali and Kashyap.
For viewers, this means easy access. No ticket. No subscription. A festival-travelled short lands on YouTube, backed by three well-known directors who want people to press play.
