IFFLA 2025’s three exceptional shorts represent strength, validation, and audaciousness in female empowerment in today’s world of reformation.
With thousands of entries sprinting into IFFLA’s short film category, it’s astonishing to grasp how layered and precise the selection process must have been to choose 18 short films this year. From sentimental dramas to gender bias and animated standpoints, the selections have covered the important foundations of impactful filmmaking in today’s world of survival. This review spotlights three extraordinary shorts from a strong lineup of 18 – each significant for their exclusive representation of female empowerment and their distinctive perspectives.
The stellar Kashmiri film An Orphanage of Memories by Rayit Hashmat Qazi enacts the grieving moments of Farah (Shafiya Maqbool), a caretaker in Kashmir who has just lost her husband. Memories crop up to occupy her personal space as she mourns his loss through a physical connection that remains – saplings brought by her husband for the kitchen garden. Farah starts planting the saplings in batches, hopeful his presence will remain and appear as a form of ‘physical memory’, only to realize that unfortunate events are soon to follow with unforeseen consequences. The atmosphere of grief matches flawlessly with the cold and foggy climate of Kashmir, where diminishing warmth in all facets places Farah in an extremely challenging situation. The screenplay is the golden ticket here, focusing on Farah’s principal moments of fortitude in full force – her zero tolerance and obsession with the garden, her inability to respond verbally, her rejection of anything that hinders her mission to make the garden bloom. The willpower that fuels her momentum to exceed normality and the patience that mirrors her eternal love for her husband are played excellently by Shafiya Maqbool.
Udit Khurana’s Tracker depicts Shalini (Jyoti Dogra), a former wrestling champion now working as a bouncer at a club in Delhi, where a recent shooting incident leads to the implementation of trackers for all employees. Komal (Ambika Kamal) joins as a new hire, coincidentally from the same village as Shalini. Things begin to unravel as concealed pasts and systemic oppression start to shape the fate of both women, with misunderstandings and mistrust escalating indefinitely. Sharing a similar vibe of connecting technology and humanity with the feature Humans in the Loop (also selected at IFFLA 2025), produced by the same team (Mathivanan Rajendran, Shilpa Kumar), Tracker is a futuristic tale that expands its reach into the possible future of the workforce, while simultaneously exposing the enduring presence of misogyny that refuses to fade. The extent of negative perceptions surrounding professionalism and responsibility toward women—especially from female superiors—receives necessary visibility through Udit Khurana’s ground-breaking and effective presentation. The power dynamics between these women are marked by different milestones: one advocating for women’s justice, the other seeking to prove herself capable of fulfilling the duties of her taskforce. A nerve-wracking, unapologetic attempt to stay ahead of the game, with survival as the ultimate motive. Yet, a dominant force of toxic masculinity may still hold the key to an unsettling truth.
The Feast (Virundhu) is a tale like no other—quietly unsettling in how director Rishi Chandna links environmental degradation to a woman’s silent but powerful role in defining what it truly means to sustain nature. A fisherwoman (D. Antony Janagi), long witness to the declining quality of her fisheries due to pollution, prepares a lavish dinner for a politician (George Vijay Nelson) who holds the authority to change the fate of her cherished lake. Winner of the Special Jury Prize at the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival, Chandna’s film centers on a diligent and courageous woman seeking transformation—not through confrontation, but through strategy, persuasion, and presentation. Protest doesn’t always arrive in chants or visible anguish; sometimes, it is simmered slowly, served gracefully, and delivered as a quiet yet unforgettable act. A revolution may not happen overnight, but a smart gesture can echo far beyond its moment.
Three exceptional shorts offer vivid portraits of strength, validation, and audacity—each a distinct voice calling for perseverance and the urgent preservation of rights and equality. At its core, cinema holds the power to challenge perceptions and provoke insight—yet its greatest strength lies in its ability to unite people around a meaningful cause, one that can inspire lasting change.
An Orphanage of Memories, Tracker and The Feast are official selections at IFFLA 2025, running on May 6-10, 2025.
