You ask too much

“You Ask Too Much” is a brief cinematic portrayal unfolding through the perspective of a nearly deaf 94-year-old Sikh woman, compelled to transition from her son’s guardianship to her daughter’s. Through her eyes, we witness her visual landscape, share in her auditory encounters, and empathize with her emotions. The film delves into the tapestry of her feelings, navigating through stress, anger, love, and boredom, culminating in a poignant realization of the perceived pain she has inflicted upon her family.

Director Biography – Ajay Rakhraj

At 28 years old, Ajay Rakhraj, a filmmaker of Burmese-Indian descent hailing from Toronto, Ontario, Canada, has crafted “You Ask Too Much” as the pinnacle of his dedication to subjective storytelling. His earlier works, such as “An Exercise in Distraction” and “Tell Me A Story,” explored this approach through a point-of-view perspective. Diverging from his prior films featuring passive protagonists, “You Ask Too Much” immerses viewers in the active engagement of its main character. Rakhraj’s ongoing pursuits include the development of feature-length narratives and documentaries, delving into individuals’ subjective experiences as they navigate an incomprehensible and inevitable societal system.

Director Statement

“You Ask Too Much” is based on the final months of my devoutly Sikh grandmother’s life as I watched the burden of care transfer from my uncle to my mother after she was forcibly moved from one home to another.

My goal in creating this film was to empathize with and imagine the range of emotions my grandmother experienced, including stress, anger, affection, and boredom, as she came to terms with the burden she placed on her family.

To achieve an immersive experience, my DoP, Sound Designer, and I deliberately chose to shoot the film in POV. We cast aside the typical POV gimmicks, such as ultra-wide angle lenses, shaky camera work, and breathing sounds, in favour of classical 3rd-person techniques, like longer lenses, static cameras, and single-shot scenes. We believe this approach allows the audience to identify with the characters on screen more naturally without being distracted by the formal choices behind the camera.

Furthermore, “You Ask Too Much” explores death by reflecting on its ever-present nature and life’s fleeting moments. Through this film, I sought to contemplate my desire for a peaceful and love-filled end, surrounded by family in a place I could call home.

(The trailer is a montage of videos I shot in the final days of my grandmother’s life and several in the aftermath.)