Visa deals with the struggle of a family trying to escape the threatening environs of their country which is in the throes of violence. Constant threat to life lingers over their sheltered existence. The husband and wife of an inter-communal marriage want to leave no stone upturned to provide their daughter with a better environment for survival.
Manish Rahatkar film’s theme is set with a realistic overtone. The concern of the individual characters expressed in the fifteen minutes of the narrative has a universal ring to it. The dialogue is simple, yet, for the most part, effective. The film’s production design presents itself in a similar manner. And effectively communicates the film’s intention of loss and entrapment. Karan Malhotra’s score is a beautifully melancholic piece of work that companions the film quite nicely.
The camera captures the characters in their state of vulnerability with utmost precision. The heart-wrenching image of the three-year-old Syrian boy Alan Kurdi after he drowned on September 2, 2015 in the Mediterranean Sea drove the director to make this film on the issue of immigration. “In order to shed light in my own way and start a conversation I choose the subject,” said the filmmaker.
The film’s performers try to pose a believable chemistry and seem to have a nice sense of pacing with one another. But it’s Shewta Basu Prasad’s stellar performance that holds the attention of the viewer. She overpowers the rest of the cast, with her sheer acting prowess.
As the narrative progresses towards the climax, the heightened moment of tension wavers away the pensiveness of the dramatic structure. Especially the use of the slow motion shot which seems as a necessity rather than a requirement to enhance the foreboding fear of rejection.
