Gondhal

Gondhal begins with what is, roughly, a 25-minute single shot at night. It follows an old man, Bhivaba (Kishor Kadam), and his grandson Vishnu (Dhruv Thoke) walking towards the gondhal, a ritual folk celebration in the village for newlyweds, and on that long-ish walk, the old man meets other men, and gossip is exchanged under the guise of curiosity, resentments are expressed under the guise of conversation, and the child’s curiosity is mistaken for his personality—he only seems to ask questions: What is this? Why is that?

Gondhal, which is written and directed by Santosh Davakhar, gets the viewers transported into the interiors of the village and the ceremony of Gondhal in a thoroughly impressive manner. It does that through a long one-take shot that not only follows different characters perform different tasks but also in presence of over 100 junior actors in a large open area. Veteran cinematographer Amalendu Chaudhary makes his presence felt in various other shots as well. No stone is left unturned when it comes to portraying the ceremony and its various aspects. One can find even minute detailing with regards to the rituals, costumes and production designing.