Even before Saawariya, Ranbir Kapoor had acted in 'Karma'; Watch the short film here

Ranbir Kapoor in the short film `Karma` (Photo/PR)

Ranbir Kapoor's first-ever short film titled 'Karma' was been screened at the Bandra Film Festival's Youtube Channel. The 26-minutes short film was showcased under the 'A Point Across' category. Directed by Abhay Chopra, grandson of the legendary filmmaker B.R. Chopra, 'Karma' revolves around capital punishment in India and is about a jailer who has to face the dilemma of performing the execution of his own son. The film was also nominated for Student Oscars.

Sharat Saxena plays the central character of the jailer, while Milind Joshi and Sushovan Banerjee feature in other pivotal roles.

Talking about the film, Abhay, who had previously helmed Sonakshi Sinha and Sidharth Malhotra's Ittefaq, said, "The year (2004) I made this film, capital punishment was a part of every prime-time debate and churned out scores of opinion pieces and cover stories. India saw the hanging of Dhananjay Chatterjee for the rape and murder of Hetal Parekh, which fuelled these debates. 'Karma' is fiction but heavily inspired by reality. If you notice carefully, the debate on capital punishment did not get over with the Dhananjay case, every crime that gets national media's attention almost always rakes up this topic."

"I have fond memories of directing Ranbir Kapoor. He had not even started his career back then. He is such an effortless actor. Acting really runs through his veins. Sharat Saxena has done a phenomenal job in the film and such a powerful screen presence. I'm glad I could tell this story and that it is getting an extended viewership on Bandra Film Festival."

Apart from 'Karma', this category also includes two more fabulous films. 'A Thin Wall', a feature-length hard-hitting documentary on the memories attached with the partition, directed by Mara Ahmed, co-produced by Surbhi Dewan and 'Backdrop', a short film portraying a patriotic glimpse at the Wagah border ceremony, directed by Nyay Bhushan.

Bandra Film Festival (BFF), a digital film festival presented by Filmkaravan in collaboration with YouTube not only helps filmmakers reach large audiences virtually but also helps viewers contribute funds to support the films and filmmakers of their choice.