Grappling with grief after the sudden loss of her husband, Farah finds comfort in planting the saplings that he had recently brought to their modest home. Just as she’s found an unexpected new lease on life, she discovers that a rat has invaded her garden, threatening the saplings. Farah is determined to eliminate the intruder at any cost, including her sanity, as a different kind of invasion begins to loom nearby that threatens to tear apart her entire existence.
Set in Kashmir during an unforgiving winter, the film’s mesmerizing photography and layered narrative paint a textured emotional canvas, eloquently speaking of loss in all its dimensions, from the passing of a person or the loss of a home, to the erasure of history. Infusing his emotional story with increasing suspense that, at times, rides the line of horror, Rayit Hashmat Qazi deftly explores the idea of memory as a form of resistance.
Rayit Hashmat Qazi
Rayit Hashmat Qazi is an independent filmmaker from Kashmir, currently based in Mumbai. He has worked as an assistant director to international and Indian directors on TVC, including on the critically acclaimed film Hotel Salvation (IFFLA 2017). Rayit has also made commercials for brands like Britannia, HUL, BMC, and Airtel. Rayit is currently developing shows for Netflix and Amazon Prime. He has a degree in Audio Visual Production and Filmmaking from the Symbiosis Institute Of Media and Communication.
