Salaam: An ode to friendship

Salaam Hemwant is a touching ode to friendship and a harsh reminder of the atrocities lovers face in our society.

Salaam is a touching ode to friendship and a harsh reminder of the atrocities lovers face in our society.

Hemwant-Tiwari

Written and directed by Hemwant Tiwari, Salaam is a film on the values of friendship and the gory violence that love ignites in our society. This is a movie that leaves you disturbed, but sends out a very strong message.

It begins with scary images of Hemwant being beaten up by a few men. Even as the actor sheds blood in the process of being tortured, flashback shows us the reason -- he helped a friend elope with a girl. The girl's brother seems totally worked up at news of her eloping and catches hold of the nearest culprit.

In the short film, Hemwant ensures that even if he dies, the friend and his girlfriend are never caught. In a disturbing, yet, touching ending, we see Hemwant giving up his life even as his promise that he won't allow the friends to be caught echoes in the background. Hemwant, Auroshikha Dey (the girl), Dipankar Chakravorty (the guy in love) and Ganesh (the girl's brother) bring out the emotions effortlessly. Hemwant, especially excells in the sequences where he is being tortured.

The story of Salaam does not offer anything new but the picturisation and execution of the short film leaves a disturbing impact on the viewer.