Paanchika, to Be Screened at IFFI, is a Moving Tale of Friendship

It is Miri’s job to walk across an unfriendly terrain to deliver lunch to her father. As she struggles over the hard, salt-pebbled ground in a pair of out-sized, tattered slippers, Suba follows, at a distance, bare-feet. What unfolds, during this tough trek, is a tale of compassion between two innocent children. Seeing Suba’s feet hurting, Miri leaves her slippers behind so Suba can wear them. When Miri is terrified with the noise of the wind roaring between the sand dunes, Suba tries to drown out the sound by chanting Ram, Ram, Ram loudly. The trick works. Miri repeats the words and forgets the wind in her ears. Later, after taking a few licks, Miri leaves behind the ice lolly her father has given her, for Suba. In turn, Suba leaves her pebbles next to Miri’s pebbles to complete a circle of five. The film ends with Suba singing merrily about the seasons…ice lolly for summer, a sweater for winter and an umbrella for the monsoon. There are ways to combat the rigours of the…