Even as poachers' faith in god deals blows to the environment, Vinayak's decision to take in an insane woman leads to a clash with social norms. And he crosses the taboo when the woman becomes pregnant.

With no social acceptability for him now possible, the villagers cut the rope bridge that Vinayak takes to reach them. Thus he becomes 'The Man Beyond the Bridge'.

'Like all my short films that have a social relevance, this film too has a message. I like portraying human dilemmas. Through this film, I wanted to convey how insanity is still viewed as something to do with god or evil and how nature is exploited even in the name of religion,' director Shetgaonkar told IANS here.

'I am very pleased with the response in Toronto. We got business inquiries from other countries,' said the filmmaker who has also served as an acting teacher at the National School Drama (NSD) in New Delhi.

The role of Vinayak, played by non-Goan Chitranjan Giri, came in for high praise by audiences. 'I picked up Giri because I knew him from the NSD. He learnt Konkani for this film,' said Shetgaonkar.

Marathi theatre actor Veena Jomkar played the insane woman.

The film will be released in Goa and Maharashtra later this year.