Happy Birthday Mummyji Review: Shefali Shah's one-woman show teaches to stay maskless; pun intended!

3.5/5

Story:

'It’s never enough what you do for others. But how often do you do enough for yourself?' In 14 mins Shefali Shah as an actor and a director gives apt answers to these questions humbly. 

Review:

If there’s an actor who has created a new league on OTT, it's Shefali Shah. After being a successful actor for many years, she has donned the director's hat and the outcome is nothing less than awesome. Shefali's first tryst with a short film was Juice which is among her best works. The actor lets her eyes do the talking and it's the same in Happy Birthday Mummyji. The film is a one-woman show created and enacted by Shefali. 

In just 14 minutes, the actor-filmmaker narrates a story to the point and in the right way. It's tough to describe the plot but yes, Shefali plays a wife, mother, daughter-in-law and aunt in the film. We see these roles in a short span of time without anyone else coming in the frame. But what takes the cake is when Suchi breathes fresh air without any role-playing, just as an individual woman. She appears maskless and rediscovers herself. Even with her dressing, she sheds off the roles that she plays. She starts as a family person and ends with just being 'Suchi'.

COVID-19 pandemic has become stressful for each individual and not many realise that the homemakers are on their toes constantly. Royal Stag Barrel Select Large Short Films latest outing Happy Birthday Mummyji in its short narration sums up that a woman in the house filled with the crowd has to keep up with many things while forgetting to make herself a priority. 

Coming to the direction, Shefali has penned a script where she has a clear-cut idea of what Suchi wants from the word go. At a time when people's lack of attention span has decreased, the film will not let you take your eyes off. You feel like Suchi mentally and desire to have a physical environment as she does. 

One who knows her craft will be intrigued to go behind the camera and Shefali shows her magic behind the lens too. 

As an actor, she shows a composed tone throughout the film even as she constantly gets yapped by her family. We rarely feel that she is freaking out because of the sense of freedom she gets out of nowhere, especially when she least expects it. 

Being a storyteller seems to come naturally to Shefali as she portrayed the roles which have been flagbearers for women from many walks of life. 

Verdict:

'She must be relaxing there', hears Suchi getting taunted by her mother-in-law for whom she does all preparations while being away from her family. That one line and one glance by Shefali Shah justifies the title and the short film completely.