Indradhanura chhai is set in a small, rapidly-growing town in India. The story looks at the complex conflicts of three women from different generations, their personal relationships and their changing attitudes to human nature in a society where traditional family and community structures slowly collapse. A film about morality and about the complicated relationship between tradition and progress. The lonely moments of the women are given an important role. Vijaya is a young woman whose husband died a few days after her wedding. With so much suffering to cope with, she cannot see how she should organise her life. She has long conversations with Pratap, a cautious and wise young man who tries to see Vijaya’s confused feelings in a reasonable way. Vijaya also worries about several social events: after the government has decided to change the law on old-age pensions, strikes and riots break out. We also see Vijaya’s friend Sonia, who is facing an identity crisis and Vijaya’s aunt Nila, who is starting to suffer from her old age. The film is characterised by the slow meditative scenes with people walking or sitting, accompanied by enchanting traditional Indian music.
