Kaanal Neer | Tamil Best Short Film Review | Currently Globally Short Films

Emotions maketh a man.

A successful cinema or a touching cinema need not be a result of grandeur or high-end VFX but, it can just be two people pouring their hearts out in a single room. Kaanal Neer reiterates the above statement and makes viewers relate and emote with the characters.

In short, this movie is about two estranged lovers meeting after few years and trying to justify the reasons behind why none of them tried calling the other. This love short film then ends with a twist.

Kaanal Neer means \”Mirage\” and this story is about a \”mirage\” that gives a false hope of existence of water and how the illusion is broken and for a movie based on heartfelt emotions, Kaanal Neer has a bigger backup in form of music and one song sequence is deeply touching.

The best part of this short film and its maker Ramya Ananthi is that she understands that cinema is a visual medium and her script stands as the testimony of her understanding. Especially for the scene where you need to establish the fact that the lead characters are estranged lovers, instead of a flashback sequence, she has the lead female character (played by Regina Cassandra) think about it with a one line dialogue of the past. That\’s actually a brilliant usage of this particular art form and also, an efficient usage of the minimal time for a short film.

In addition to that, there are plenty of scenes which is filled with small gestures which blend with the emotions of the characters, holding hands during a phone call and withdrawing it when the truth strikes and hesitation before hugging are two scenes of note.

Few dialogues have a Gautham Menon like patterns and may be Vinnaithaandi Varuvaaya which released in the same year as the short film impacted the director in some ways and the simplicity and English dialogues in between which are perfectly natural to the scene also look like a tribute to Gautham Menon.

Both Adith Arun (of Inidhu Inidhu & Thangamagan fame) and Regina Cassandra (trending currently thanks to Yembuttu irukudhu aasa song) make a neat performance and to see these established actors at a young age gives you a unique surprise.

Technically, for a short film made 7 years ago with shoelace budget, Kaanal Neer is fantastic and a point to note is that the entire short film is made in a single shot without any cuts. Music by Britto deserves a special mention as described earlier and Ramya Ananthi deserves applause for the way she made this simple concept a neat and instantly likable short film.

Our Rating:

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHBcJXAvo4o&h=340]