Not Today
Aditya Kripalani
India. 2020. 91 min
Aliah Rupawala, is a 24 year old Bohri Muslim girl from a very traditional family. She secretly becomes a Suicide Prevention Counsellor and on her first day she encounters a 52 year old man about to jump from the terrace of a high-rise. As she begins to try to bring him down, she is forced to confront why she became a Suicide Prevention Counsellor in the first place, and also share a lot of herself to get him to share and open up. Going all in, to save him, she begins to deal with and release the loneliness and grief in herself to be able to do the same in the caller. And in doing so, ends up healing not just her own heart, but also the heart of the man who has called, a man who has himself been a Suicide Prevention Counsellor for 15 years.
ADITYA KRIPALANI
Writer/ Director, Aditya Kripalani is a script writing graduate from the Film and Television Institute of India. He’s been credited as the Script Consultant on multiple award-winning films like ‘Tahaan’, and ‘Jogwa’. Since 2008 he’s written 3 bestselling novels, ‘Back Seat’, ‘Front Seat’ and ‘Tikli and Laxmi Bomb’. His third novel, became his first feature film, which he wrote, directed and produced.
Along with being screened at a lot of film festivals, the film has won many awards like Best Film award at the 9th Berlin Independent Film Festival, 2018; Best Film – Gender Equality award at the 20th UK Asian Film Festival, 2018 and Best feature at the New Jersey Indian & International Film festival, 2018 etc . The film is currently streaming on Netflix.
In 2018, Aditya wrote his second film, ‘The Incessant Fear of Rape’ (Netflix) which he also directed and produced. This film was also screened at various national and international Film festivals like Kala Ghoda Art festival in Mumbai and the 21st UK Asian Film Festival in London, UK, Garden State Film Festival, New Jersey. , Split Film Festival, Croatia. In 2019, Aditya’s third feature film, ‘Devi Aur Hero’ (The Goddess and the Hero) screened at the 25th Kolkata International Film festival, 2019 and won Best film award in the NETPAC Category. Aditya Kripalani has also been a writer and Creative Director in advertising in India, Singapore & Malaysia with wins at Cannes, the Korean Ad Stars and the Malaysian Kancil awards over the years.
FILMOGRAPHY
Tahaan (2008/ Fiction/Feature/97 minutes) as Script Consultant Jogwa (2009/Fiction/Feature/114 minutes) as Script Consultant
Tikli and Laxmi Bomb (2017/Fiction/Feature/151 minutes) as Writer, Director, Producer, Composer and Scuffles.
Tottaa Pataaka Item Maal (2018/Fiction/Feature/107 minutes) as Writer, Director, Producer and Action Director
The Goddess and the Hero (2019/Fiction/Feature/117 minutes) as Writer, Director, Producer and Action Director
Not Today (2020/ Fiction/Feature 91 minutes) as Writer, Director, Producer.
DIRECTOR,S NOTE
About 6 years I met someone through a friend who used to work in Suicide Prevention. Whether people killing themselves is alright is something that has forever been debatable. But when someone takes it upon themselves to try to convince people who call in, to not end their lives, they go through a tremendous amount of anguish, guilt, anger, pain and grief themselves. Because unlike the job of a regular counsellor, for a Suicide Prevention Counsellor, not succeeding doesn’t mean an unhappy client, it means the death of the client. And this made me want to explore the mind of a Suicide Prevention Counsellor and a young one at that, one who is dealing with her first day as an SPC. And her first dangerous call.
PRESS KIT
CONTACT
MUMBA DEVI MOTION PICTURES : anuradhapandey.5494@gmail.com
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