LUMI x BFF: Second Chance Review

Subhadra Mahajan’s Second Chance is a celebration of kinship and the quiet ways in which we can affect and change one another. Feeling utterly abandoned after a traumatic breakup and termination, Nia (Dheera Johnson) retreats to the north of India, to her parent’s holiday home that is occupied only by workers. Through Nia’s eyes, we are able to experience the desire of pure escapism in the face of heartache, to retreat both physically and mentally to heal. In the opening frames of the film, we are invited to bask in the enormity of the mountainside along with Nia, the film’s beautiful black and white image almost overwhelming the senses with its blinding light.
 
Nia is caught in a world of grey, quite literally, as she isolates herself in her family home. In the face of her circumstances, she ignores and rebuffs the most basic of pleasantries with those who greet her. Nia is waited on by de facto housekeeper Bhemi (a fantastic performance from the non-professional Thakra Devi), whose nurturing and multifaceted presence is a steadfast as a flowing river. While they couldn’t seem more different, ultimately, they are two women who are living with the weight of their past choices. A comradery emerges and there is a comfort in the knowledge that those who have gone before have survived similar trials. Nia also begins to open up due to the persistence of Bhemi’s energetic grandson Sunny (Kanav Thakur), who steals every scene that he’s in. Lost in his own world of imagination and mischief, he has just as much heart as his grandmother.

It is only when Nia begins to reciprocate acts of kindness that her restorative journey truly begins and cements the film as an ode to the healing power of community. Barriers such as class, generational divides and life experiences are all eroded as this trio (a quartet if you include Sunny’s adorable kitten) come together to live and work in harmony. Second Chance truly excels when it lingers on this dynamic and on the positive impact they have on one another. 

The extreme north of the Himalayan mountains and the surrounding woodland feel almost sentient, absorbing the character’s pain and infusing them with its strength. Nearly every frame of this film felt like it belonged on a postcard, the majesty of the rural surrounding was palpable and everything felt so filled with life. The framing and shot composition allowed the landscape to dominate the frame, with the characters being permitted to move and dwell within it. As a result, Nia becomes as fortified as her mountain surroundings, learning how to weather the storms that pass her by, just like Bhemi has done before her.

Second Chances is a confident and compassionate debut from writer and director Subhadra Mahajan, a nuanced depiction of healing and the expression of a love that need not be verbalised, but is always felt. Ultimately, this is a film of contrasts; of isolation and connection, of pain and solace, and of the very black and white of the film’s image. It is a tender and empathetic journey of healing that highlights how quiet acts of kindness can restore us. It is as warm and inviting as its wonderful characters.