THAT MINUTE … never returns is a short film by Melbourne based filmmaker Ashok Chavali. The film portrays a unique but well researched father-daughter relationship.

Each father-daughter relationship is unique yet most Indian households draw a parallel – best described as love-hate-love relationship until she moves on as a responsible adult and only then she knows ‘ how big was the role that her father played to form her adult psyche’.

Modern psychology and research tells us that young girls and women typically look to their father for a representation of male companionship standards.

The quality of father-daughter relationships is believed by experts and found in research, to be a huge deciding factor when it comes to romantic relationships.

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A still from THAT MINUTE … never returns

A recent study conducted by Durham University, UK, concludes that women who have experienced positive father-daughter relationships usually end up selecting partners who resemble, or remind them of their fathers.

Although, Ashok Chavali has not touched upon these issues, in his short film titled THAT MINUTE … never returns in Hindi and the same story in Telugu titled AA NIMUSHAM … thirigi raadu; – I was drawn to the moments when I loved my father for doting and splurging on me; hated him for not allowing me to go to any parties and loved him when he loved my would-be husband.

That moment when everyone said, “your husband is so much like your Dad”.

These are moments that never return and Ashok Chavali with his “with extremely limited resources” drew on a simplistic yet timeless version of ‘that moment which we wish we could rewrite as a different script’.

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Although Ashok Chavali said “Thank God, these are not Love Stories” – his character as the father doting on his daughter and looking forward to just that cup of coffee with her, is a portrayal of an unconditional love – a story that reveals itself, when the father is no more, thus THAT MINUTE … never returns.

A brilliant and powerful narrative, we wish had no budget constraints.

Ashok Chavali talks of his work with “human values” in the cinematic version and we may soon see more of these touching works.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPbt2nKHet4 (HINDI VERSION)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=mF5nq3UD7O4 (TELUGU VERSION)

Born into a family of esteemed musicians, Ashok Chavali started playing Tabla when he was barely three and now has 40 years of experience.

He is a well-known personality of classical music in Melbourne and has numerous performances with top film singers and cinema recordings to his credit. A professional electronics engineer, Ashok Chavali is also an avid film maker.

By Mehta