SRFTI short film only Indian movie at Red Sea Film Fest
Times of India | 30 October 2025Anamika Pal's film, which presents the story of a new mother's crisis as her breast milk gradually dries up, examines gender bias and the indifference among women, resulting from prolonged, silent oppression. "I belong to the shepherd community in UP. My ancestors used to tend to goats and sheep for milk and wool. I have never gone out of my hometown and my college city, and here I will be travelling to an entirely new country.
This selection gives courage to a film-maker like me. Back at home in a small town, no one in my family or among my acquaintances actually understands my work," said the director.
A three-woman team, comprising producer Gauri Maheshram, DOP Disha Sharma and editor Rani Bed Banshi, worked on the film. "Our short film talks about the crisis of a new mother, whose breast milk dries up gradually when she stays at her in-law's place for a funeral, followed by a 13-day mandatory stay.
As her child's health starts to be affected, she desperately drinks a glass of undiluted milk, considered a domestic sin," Pal said.
Pointing out that she had overheard a similar anecdote back in Allahabad when she was a child, Pal said, "My relatives described a distant daughter-in-law who drank raw milk secretly, which led to widespread criticism. That incident made me realise how gender played a big role in women getting their share of basic needs, even in contemporary India."
She was disturbed by the lack of empathy among the woman relatives towards the new mother's crisis.
"Women relatives described the incident like a crime. While I understood that milk and ghee might not be available in abundance in a middle-class setup, the kind of indifference shown towards the daughter-in-law was unfair and troubling," she said.
The daughter-in-law was not allowed to fetch milk from the milkman. Instead, another family member stayed in the kitchen while the milk was boiled. After boiling, the milk was carefully placed in the fridge.
"Prolonged oppression shaped such attitudes. There is a sense of internalised gender bias that leads women to believe they deserve less than men. They reinforce that belief among their peers," she added.
