The Colors Trilogy is a series of short films with themes based on women juxtaposed with the ideologies behind the three colors of the

Indian National Flag The national flag of India, Colloquialism, colloquially called Tiraṅgā (the tricolour), is a horizontal rectangular tricolour flag, the colours being of India Saffron (color)#Political & religious uses, saffron, white and Variations of gree ...

. The trilogy is delivered through the Indian classical dance form

Bharatanatyam ''Bharatanatyam'' is a Indian classical dance form that came from Tamil Nadu, India. It is a classical dance form recognized by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, and expresses South Indian religious themes and spiritual ideas of Hinduism and Jainism.< ...

. The films ''Green'' was released in 2020, and the second and third films ''White'' and ''Saffron'' were released in 2021. The films were

choreographed Choreography is the art of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which motion or form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A choreographer creates choreographies thr ...

and performed by

Savitha Sastry Savitha Sastry (born 11 August 1969) is an Indian dancer and choreographer best known as an exponent of Bharatanatyam. She is known to experiment with the format of traditional Bharatanatyam by using the techniques of Bharatanatyam to showcase ...

. They were written and directed by her husband

AK Srikanth AK or A.K. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''A.K.'' (film), a 1985 film directed by Chris Marker * AK (radio program), a weekly program produced by Alaska Public Radio Network from 2003 to 2008, later a segment on ''Alaska News Nightly'' * ...

. The soundtrack was scored by

Rajkumar Bharathi Rajkumar Bharathi is a classical singer and composer from India. He is the great-grandson of the renaissance poet Subramanya Bharathi. Rajkumar is an Electronics and telecommunications engineer graduated from the College of Engineering, Guind ...

, All three films have won awards in several international film festivals.

''Green''

''Green'' (2020) was the first release in this series. The colour Green in the flag represents

prosperity Prosperity is the flourishing, thriving, good fortune and successful social status. Prosperity often produces profuse wealth including other factors which can be profusely wealthy in all degrees, such as happiness and health. Competing notions ...

, and the film examines prosperity in women with relation to their freedom of choice. The protagonist of the film is portrayed to be in an affluent and seemingly happy family, living with her husband, mother in law and two daughters. However, there are signs of discontent in her as she wishes to pursue her own dreams of being a dancer, while everyone else thinks she is already successful as she has taken up the responsibility of caring for the family and the children. Critic Ayesha Tabassum of the ''

Indian Express ''The Indian Express'' is an English-language India, Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932 by P. Varadarajulu Naidu. It is headquartered in Noida, owned by the Indian Express Limited, ''Indian Express Group''. It was later taken over by Ramnat ...

'' wrote that "The 15-minute film, the first in a trilogy, which explores the role of women, creatively uses Bharatanatyam as a medium. Shilpa SR of ''

the Hindu ''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It was founded as a weekly publication in 1878 by the Triplicane Six, becoming a daily in 1889. It is one of the India ...

'' wrote that the film "delves into the workings of a woman’s mind" The film has also won several nominations across film festivals. *Won - Best Film on Women: Calcutta International Cult Film Festival *Won - Best short fiction: 6th International Film Festival of Shimla *Finalist - Best Director: Tokyo International Short Film Festival *Finalist - Best Short Film: Seoul International Short Film Festival *Finalist - Best Short Film: Near Nazareth Festival *Nominated - Best Short on Female empowerment: New York Tri-State International Film Festival *Nominated - Best Short Film: Golden Bridge Istanbul Short Film Festival *Nominated - Best Short Drama: Asians on Film Festival of Shorts *Nominated - Best Short Drama: Open Window International Film Challenge *Nominated - Best Short Film: Mediterranean Film Festival

Cannes Cannes (, ; , ; ) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions Internatio ...

*Nominated - Best Films up to 20 Mins: 6th Jaipur Film World 2021 *Nominated - Best Short: Festival Angaelica

''White''

"White" (2021) is the second film in the trilogy. White in the flag represents truth and peace. This film is an artistic autobiography of

and follows her journey from being a traditional Bharatanatyam dancer, to one who uses the dance form to narrate novel stories. Critic Ayesha Singh of the ''Indian Express'' wrote that Savitha "finds herself at the top of the virtual game". Critic Manvi Pant of ''eShe'' goes on to say "Bharatanatyam dancer and choreographer Savitha Sastry’s experiments with traditional dancing techniques and her innovations in the field have been widely recognised by critics and peers alike. Known for pushing boundaries, Savitha is a pioneer in taking the dance out of its mythological and religious moulds, and using it to narrate novel stories". Critic Roshni Chakraborthy of ''

India Today ''India Today'' is a weekly Indian English-language news magazine published by Living Media, Living Media India Limited. It is the most widely circulated magazine in India, with a readership of close to 8 million. In 2014, ''India Today'' laun ...

'' said "The now-renowned dancer is breaking the mythology and devotion-based art form of Bharatanatyam out of its box and widening its scope with breath-taking stories that capture the audience". Critic Monika Monalisa of the "Indian Express" praised Savitha's performance with the words "The world celebrates International Dance Day on April 29, but for city-based Bharatanatyam dancer Savitha Sastry, every day is a celebration of this art form. Sastry is riding the wave of success of her film Colors: White" The film has gone on to receive nominations at multiple film festivals. *Won - Best Director, Short: New York International Film Awards *Won - Best Director: Rosarito International Film Festival, Mexico *Finalist - Best Director: New Wave Short Film Festival,

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

*Finalist - Best International Narrative Short: Toronto Independent Film Festival of Cift *Finalist - Best Short Film: L'Âge d'or International Arthouse Film Festival,

Kolkata Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...

*Nominated - Best Director: Paris Film Festival *Nominated - Best Short Film: Lift-Off Online Sessions, UK *Nominated - Best Dance Film: Paris Play Film Festival

Saffron

"Saffron" (2021) is the third and concluding film in the trilogy. Saffron in the Indian National Flag represents courage. This film follows the protagonist in a dystopian future where women deemed more successful than men are placed in a 'cell' with their memories erased, for the rest of their natural lives. The short film was highly lauded for its intense delivery. The Mumbai-based daily DNA called it "a befitting tribute to the strength & courage of a woman as the color ‘Saffron’ in the Indian Flag is a symbol of Strength and Courage" in its edition of September 8, 2021, and went on to praise Savitha Sastry's portrayal "The eyecatcher of the short film is Savitha Sastry. She has beautifully portrayed her role and is winning a lot of applause for her brilliant performance." Writer and Director

was lauded for the script, with Business Standard reporting "Writer AK Srikanth's story, while here as a short film, comes to life as it was written. And it is that much richer as an experience for all.""The Award Winning Trilogy "Colors" culminates on Independence Day with its third part Colors: Saffron" Business Standard, 10 August 2021
The film has also won nominations in several festivals, including *Finalist - Best Drama - Lake Placid Film Festival 2021 *Won - Best Music (Abhay Nayampally) - 10th Delhi Shorts International Film Festival-21 *Won - Best Director - Calcutta International Cult Film Festival *Nominated - Best Short - 7th Art Festival of Miami *Nominated - Best Short Indian Film - Ayodhya Film Festival

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Colors Trilogy 2020 in Indian cinema 2021 in Indian cinema Bharatanatyam Drama films by series Film series introduced in 2020 Indian film series