Dhanya Dharma Rajan stars as the titled character Dhara in Praveen Balaji Thangamani Balasubramanian’s 10-minute thriller short film. Written and directed by Balasubramanian, the short film centres around Dhara, a downbeat IT worker who has lost work promotion. The narrative explores the important of friendship and loyalty – which is tested when a serial killer intrudes the home she shares with her roommates (Arya and Kala). Dhanya Dharma Rajan (Dhara) also contributes to the screenplay. Ayushi Pancholi stars as Arya and Pavithra Yuvaraja as Kala.

The short begins with a disgruntled Dhara, who dismisses conversations with her friends/roomates. She just wants to be left alone and comes across uncaring and considerate of her friends needs. The film does a complete 180 and swiftly the audience is exposed to the thrills and danger of a killer in the house. Arya accuses Dhara of cowardly acts – when she runs out of the house in fear and leaving her friends in danger.

Visually the film looks standard, with admirable performances throughout. However, the narrative fails to engage when our protagonist (Dhara) reaches their catalyst. The killer, at times, comes across fright-less and unwavering – which certainly takes the thrill out of this thriller. The ending is perhaps the hardest to grasp. Was this all just a nightmare? The film concludes with the quote: “Make your dreams a reality before time makes you forget”. A nice film, with clever intentions, but the narrative could be stronger.