Madan Mehra

If the world had an edge, it might look something like the remote corner of northern India where Santosh and Rajji live, collecting highway tolls in dilapidated booths. Work and endless waiting are blurred together. Bound by the power of love, but also by the need to constantly move around in search of work, they dream of the happiness that awaits them in a new place… until one day, a sudden tragedy turns their lives upside down.

When Anusuya confesses to her husband, Gopal, that she cheated on him with another man a few months into their five decade-long marriage, all hell breaks loose. Angry and hurt, Gopal decides to seek divorce while he struggles to keep the rest of the family oblivious to his and Anusuya’s blistering secret. What follows is an impassioned, often hilarious deep-dive into the lives of Gopal and Anusuya while they manoeuvre the rocky roads of their relationship, rediscovering the meaning of love and togetherness.

The narrative revolves around Latika, a simple, optimistic young woman. She represents one of the countless girls whose societal norms forbid them from experiencing love, intimacy, or friendship with a man prior to marriage. Strangely, these same girls are expected to effortlessly transform into sensual goddesses overnight upon entering matrimony.

When MONU’s (11) parents decide to migrate from their remote Himalayan village to the city, he realizes that he may never be able to see SHERA, the elusive leopard that lives in the forests around his village. Everyone in the village seems to have seen her but MONU. As the day of departure nears, MONU grows despondent but his best friend RAJU is determined to give him the best parting gift he can think of – a view of SHERA.