Karma, a short film starring Ranbir Kapoor was recently screened at the Bandra Film Festival. Three years before debuting into mainstream Bollywood with Saawariya, Ranbir Kapoor made his acting debut in Karma. Produced and directed by Abhay Chopra, it also stars Sharat Saxena, Milind Joshi and Sushovan Banerjee. The 26-minute film was nominated for the Student Oscars. It was made at the time when a young Ranbir was studying at a film institute with Abhay Chopra.

The film is now available on YouTube and has some marvellous performances by the actors. It explores the dilemma of a father (who is a jailor) to execute his own son. This film is set in 1964 when revolutions against anti-capital punishment were on the rise. Kapoor plays the jailor’s son, Aryan, who has been convicted for murder. More than Aryan’s karma, the film is about the jailor’s karma. The jailor executes convicts without flinching. However, a dilemma arises when he is faced by the thought of killing his own son. After all, the stern jailor is also a father who is ready to give his son a second chance. The jailor who watches convicts hang till death without batting an eye is now teary-eyed a day before Aryan’s execution. The film is a commentary on death penalty which was the default punishment for murder during that time. 

The short film has a dark and gloomy setting which mirrors the emotions of the characters. The whole film is driven by the performances of Sharat Saxena and Ranbir Kapoor and none of them disappoint the audience. Although Ranbir Kapoor was still learning to act when this film was made, he does a good job of portraying the intense character of Aryan. He was truly a star in the making at that time. 

The ending is unexpected and gives the audience something to think about. Overall, the film has a moving plot which keeps the audience engaged till the end.