In Jaydeep Sarkar’s 20-minute short film, “Nayantara’s Necklace”, the audience is brought into the world of the post-liberalised Indian middle class and made to question the values that they hold. Two captivating yet polarised characters named Nayantara (Konkona Sensharma) and Alka (Tillotima Shome) occupy most of the screen time in this powerful drama that is set in modern-day Mumbai. The two characters are familiar with each other because their children study together, yet beyond that, they don’t seem to have much in common, at least on the surface.
As the story continues, we learn more about the developing dynamic of the two women’s relationship, which is continually dominated by Nayantara while Alka plays a more submissive and inquisitive role. Nayantara is considered the authority on all things cool, acceptable and modern as she continually brags about her extensive travelling plans, the walk-in closet she used to have in her lavish Dubai apartment and how she refuses to live as a “second class” citizen.
Alka is much more traditional and laid back than Nayantara, in that she is not concerned with superficial matters such as appearance, fancy travelling trips, and even social media. Alka wears traditional Indian clothes for most of the film, a bindi, and hardly incorporates English into her vocabulary, casting her as a symbol for the old Indian middle class.
The film opens with scenes of Nayantara and Alka talking about how the latter is going to impress her old school crush, Girish, when she meets him for a drink sometime in the not-so-distant future. Nayantara is donning a cigarette at Alka’s dining table, almost as if it is a newfound symbol of “sophistication” while she coaches her about how to order Chardonnay with her date as opposed to the fresh lime soda she had intended on. Based on Nayantara’s confidence in advising Alka on how to behave, the audience is lead to believe that her husband and she have the ideal relationship. Alka craves the same romance with her husband, and she is inspired by Nayantara’s suggestions to pursue the date with Girish just to see how it will make her feel.
A point worth noting here is that Nayantara has very few interactions with her husband on screen, with the exception of a moment where her husband Facetimes her while Alka is in the passenger seat of their car. Their exchange is brief yet informative, as we can see that secret-keeping with the goal of maintaining a perfect appearance is an integral part of their relationship, a pressure that eventually causes tremendous damage.
Sarkar’s inclusion of this plot point is genius, as it is so relatable for anyone who has seen themselves or their family members try to keep up with the coolest and most happening members of a society at the cost of their financial health and emotional well-being.
The film comes to a head when Nayantara gives Alka a larger than life western makeover before her date with Girish; her new look is achieved through her new, dramatic haircut, her face being adorned with makeup and Nayantara’s placement of her pearl necklace from Singapore around Alka’s neck. When that date is completed, the audience comes to realise that Nayantara’s influence on Alka and her insistence on her acting “posh” and more upper class than she actually is, backfires on them both. For Alka, the date lacks chemistry or any sense of real understanding between her and Girish, and for Nayantara, the consequences of being someone who she cannot afford to be are much direr.
Sarkar does an excellent job of portraying the small intricacies that are an integral part of the lives of India’s more conservative and traditional Hindu middle class and how they contrast with those of the new middle class. For example, Alka and Nayantara both do not work, yet Alka tends to the chores around the house and prioritises her son’s well-being over her own. She makes chai, her kitchen table is adorned with achaar, and she cooks using a pressure cooker; all of these sensory details combined have the potential to invoke a deep sense of nostalgia in the audience’s heart. However, none of these daily chores and rituals is part of Nayantara’s routine, but instead, her time involves meticulous makeup application, going out for high tea with other socialites, and beyond.
Sarkar’s cinematography focuses heavily on shooting the women in private spaces such as Alka’s kitchen or Nayantara’s car, and they are never shot together in a public setting. This nuance adds a huge amount of impact to the director’s message; the audience can do a lot to ponder the meaning of this particular detail as well. Is Nayantara too embarrassed to be out in public with Alka? Is Alka’s traditionalism and more uninhibited Indianness a threat to Nayantara’s social status? These are all questions whose answers might further lead to self-reflection among India’s native and diaspora communities about how elitism creeps into our lives and causes us to disown our very own people.
Overall, this film is impactful in the short amount of it’s running time, and it is definitely worth watching for the social commentary that it makes. Konkona Sensharma and Tillotima Shome’s acting is powerful as both of these women carry out their contrasting roles with efficiency and ease. Sarkar’s direction is intentional, intricate and makes a statement that is long-lasting and should jog the minds and hearts of every Indian when it comes to the changing values of the country’s middle class.
“Nayantara’s Necklace” should remind all of us to make sure to never lose ourselves and our humanity despite the money or fame we might amass throughout our careers and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who loves watching meaningful films.