In the piecing together of home videos shot by her parents nearly 2 decades earlier, and through a string of conversations with her father, mother, and sister, a daughter looks to understand the impact of her father's alcoholism on each of their lives: the sister's refusal to include him in her life; the mother's belief that her daughters should reach out to their father despite her own refusal to see him; the father's moment of honest introspection.

In talking to them, the questions she is struggling with come to the fore: should she stand behind him, drawing only on her memories of what a wonderful father he was? Or should she move on, and build her life without him?

Director’s Statement:
Firsts are always special, but Bare has been more than just my first film.

In the piecing together of home videos that my parents had shot of the four of us when I was just a few years old and through phone conversations that I planned to hold with my father, mother and sister, I was looking to understand the impact of Dad’s alcoholism on us and our lives, my own especially.

What took me by surprise was being able to see things from his perspective, something I had never allowed myself to do before. That I was making a film on the subject gave me just enough distance from our relationship to actually listen to him without passing judgement. And my mother, sister and I had conversations that made the whole process harder than ever, challenging one another’s reasons for continuing to see him or not - in the brutal way that only those who love you most can do.

I had set out to make a film centred on my recent decision to sever all ties with my father, instead I ended up making one on my state of absolute indecision regarding whether I wanted him in our out of my life. Should the fact that he was a champion father when I was a little girl compensate for the alcoholism that turned our relationship bitter and resentful as I grew older? Should I rein in my expectations of him today and continue to love him only for what he gave me years ago? Or is foolish to even expect to be able to make a decision so black-and-white, when we’re talking matters of the heart?

Director’s Biography:
Santana Issar graduated in Economics from Delhi University in 2005. Thereafter, she interned with a news channel before coming upon work as an assistant director on a corporate film. The chance to direct Bare - her first film - came along a year later.

Since Bare’s completion she has worked with a media action group, and is currently completing a research fellowship on animal activism.