Eventive
Virtual May 2 - 4, 2025
North America Premiere
Sad Letters of an Imaginary Woman
India | Narrative Feature
2023 | 79 mins | Hindi
Nidhi (43) and her mother Meera (70) exist in a decaying ancestral house, a physical manifestation of their stagnant lives. Nidhi's childhood was marred by a traumatic event involving her father that left her emotionally isolated and perpetually melancholic. She grapples with her past by writing haunting letters to her younger self, lamenting what could have been and warning her of what awaits. Meera harbors deep regrets over an unrequited love affair that never came to fruition, a wistful yearning that compounds her sense of failure as a mother witnessing Nidhi's profound despair. Yet, a flicker
of hope remains – the possibility of Nidhi finding solace. When Nidhi discovers an ancient mystical ritual that promises oblivion through vanishing, the idea takes root. Meera, in a last act of love, decides to join Nidhi on this metaphysical journey into nothingness. As mother and daughter perform the rites, the barriers between past and present dissolve.
Memories bleed into the present, echoing their anguished cries long suppressed by society's expectations.On one transcendent night, enveloped in darkness, they disappear - two flightless birds finally freed from their corporeal and emotional prisons. An experimental meditation on the complex struggles women endure.
Restoration Process
About the Artist
A recipient of the Asian Cinema Fund and Biennale College Cinema, Nidhi Saxena is a filmmaker whose work explores human vulnerability and existential themes through a distinctly poetic lens. With a formal background in sculpture and fine art, she transitioned to filmmaking after studying at the Film and Television Institute of India.
Her approach to cinema, influenced by auteurs like Tsai Ming-Liang and Apichatpong Weerasethakul, seeks to transcend conventional narrative in search of the abstract and spiritual. Nidhi has also worked extensively with marginalized women through UN Population Fund initiatives. She is currently working on her next feature film.
Trailer
For English subtitles, make sure to turn on the YouTube closed captions.
Credits
Director:
Nidhi Saxena
Writer:
Nidhi Saxena
Producer(s):
Vimukthi Jayasundara
Ajender Singh
Film Editor:
Saman Alvitigala
Anamika Tiwari
Bhadra Basu
Pratiksha Rakesh Bhai
Nabanita Chakrabortya
Avinash Gupta
Thank you to our community partners for this screening!
This program was made possible in part with a grant from Humanities Texas, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
