‘Second Chance’ review: A young woman heals in a valley with a view

A woman grieving the end of a relationship repairs to her family home in the Kulu Valley in search of new beginnings. Subhadra Mahajan’s directorial debut expands its one-line premise in fulfilling and at times poignant ways.

The dancer Nia’s heartache is evident in her tendency to huddle under her sheets rather than step outside the house to take in the magnificent view of the snow-covered mountains. Twinkly-eyed caretaker Bhemi (Thakri Devi) and her sparky grandson Sunny (Kanav Thakur) coax Nia (Dheera Johnson) out of her misery, as does the landscape itself.

Sunny is especially cute since he’s not trying to be. From kissing his dead mother’s photo to chatting away with himself, Sunny is an unselfconscious free spirit. A cuddly kitten pops up too, another sign for Nia that life must go on. But she struggles to overcome her melancholia, or simply be with herself.

Second Chance is being screened in the Indian Cinema Now section at the International Film Festival of Kerala. The narrative is sharpest in its therapeutic aspects. Climate change, which can ruin the natural beauty that contributes to Nia’s healing, looms in the background.

Swapnil S Sonawane’s lustrous black-and-white palette focuses the eye on the faces and the locations, while also bringing out the starkness...

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