SIVARANJINIYUM INNUM SILA PENGALUM (2018)
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| Critic No. 251 |
Written by: Vasanth
Produced by: Hamsa Productions
Casts: Lakshmi Priyaa Chandramouli, Pravathy Thiruvothu, Kalieswari Sreenivasan, Karunakaran, Sunder Ramu, Karthick Krishna
Music: Ilaiyaraja
Language: Tamil
Genre: Drama
SYNOPSIS:
Sivaranjiniyum Innum Sila Pengalum is an anthology involving three stories about three women from different time periods whose lives are controlled by their marriage.
REVIEW:
Sivaranjiniyum Innum Sila Pengalum, an adaptation of three short stories by Asokamitran, Jeyamohan and Aadhavan paints a poignant picture of the expectations that women have thrust upon them when they are married. This film, though released in festivals in 2018, reminded me of The Great Indian Kitchen (2021), which also shows the mirror to the patriarchy that has seeped into our everyday lives and what that has meant for women. In Sivaranjiniyum Innum Sila Pengalum, the three stories happen in three different eras — Saraswathi in the 1980s, Devaki in 1995 and Sivaranjini from 2007 onwards. Vasanth poetically brings out that while time has passed with many advances in technology and lifestyle, Indian men and the patriarchal culture they believe have not changed a bit.
The film kicks off with the first story of Saraswathi (Kalieaswari Srinivasan) who is shown to be living with a husband, Chandran (Karunakaran) is out right selfish and chauvinistic from the first frame. He lets Saraswathi carry their child and also two bags and walk empty-handed in front of her, who also expects her to run and catch the cus and also serve him food after a long trip (and gobles down most of the food, not caring whether his wife has some). At one instance, when Chandran starts hitting her because the baby was crying, she stops him and tells him not to hit her. This trips Chandran’s ego and he starts cold-shouldering her. Even then, she is expected to hand him his towel when he goes for a bath and serve appalam when he sits down for a meal after much pleading.
The first story plays out with great blocking and staging where we see this claustrophobic small house with one big wooden chair. Vasanth frames in a way that Chandran is always on the foreground (looking bigger) while we see Saraswathi in the background, who is always behind him, looking smaller like a prop. There is a great use of emotional beats and pauses in the film that increases the tension between the characters. I loved the ending frame of the film when she finds freedom and sits on the wooden chair finally, sipping her tea, basically she can finally be at her own house, like a queen rather than a slave. It was interesting to see how men felt (or even maybe feeling now) in India back in the 80s that they are entitled to ill treat women and when they show some resistance, they are ‘hurt’. People might call it culture, but I could only see stupidity. Both Kalieaswari and Karunakaran are subtle and effective in portraying this quiet but hard hitting story.
The second film is about Devaki, a working woman who lives with her husband’s family. This film is told from the eyes of the husband’s nephew who one day playfully reveals to his mother that Devaki is writing a diary without knowing the consequences. This small issue of writing a diary becomes big when Devaki is expected to read out her private diary just because her husband, Mani's (Sunder Ramu) family thinks she might have written something bad about them in it.
The film is a great visual example of how men think that women should not have a mind of their own. In the film a character literally says, “Why does a woman need a diary or an avenue to write her thoughts?”. Vasanth effectively brings out how a working woman is seen as a threat by backdated family members and will eventually try to put them in a place that they think they belong. Even Devaki's room has doors at two sides reflecting the absence of privacy with two other couples living in the house is a beautiful touch. Parvathy portrays her role very well with her controlled emotions. Again, the film shows how from 80s to 90s though there is change in working dynamics between the genders, ultimately, men will always be men. In the family, the sister in law character in particular is a stark contrast to Devaki and she firmly believes that women need to only serve for the family’s purpose (which means men’s purpose). As long as these kinds of submissive women exist, it is also very difficult to change the society in India.
The final film is about Sivaranjini (Lakshmipriyaa Chandramouli) a running champion at school whose passion is short-lived due to a sudden arranged marriage. The film focuses on her day to day activities, particularly the morning rush hour at the kitchen. We see her moving from the kitchen, where she is making coffee and breakfast, to the bedroom, to wake up her husband Hari (Karthick Krishna) and her daughter. Then, she is back to the kitchen, from where she goes to another room, to give her mother-in-law her coffee.
The family (mother in law and husband) though living in a modern society is filled with a backward thinking, who probably have developed a sense of entitlement, thanks to our patriarchal social set-up in the 80s and 90s. This is clearly evident when her mother-in-law expects her coffee to be made with cow's milk and not with packet milk. Hari expects his wife to find or fetch his things even when she is occupied with other things. They simply don’t care how difficult it might be for her to juggle so many things. There is a brilliant one take done in the kitchen in the small constrained, claustrophobic space that almost expresses how women are expected to live in such a small world. The sound design is top notch as we hear all the hustles of the kitchen and the house as form of a ticking clock for Sivaranjini to attain her goal each day. Lakshmi Priya performs really well and the amount of stress and anxiety she shows through her eyes and body without uttering a word is masterful. I really hope she gets more roles in bigger films to showcase her talent.
For me, the film is a great portrayal of how the mindset has not changed over the era about gender equality despite the many advancements that have been made by India. Though the film touches upon many dramatic issues, it is told in a non melodramatic, muted way that poignantly expresses its intent without pushing too much. Yes, there is a feeling that perhaps we might want to see more of the women but due to the structure of the film, Vasanth keeps his world small and concise. Ilaiyaraja’s music was the only factor for me that I felt didn’t gel with the dry, realistic approach the film was going for. I felt that the score was too filmy for a treatment as such.
It is a great return for the ace director Vasanth in 2021 (also ‘Payasam’ from Navarasa) and I am truly expecting more great, relevant, hard hitting stories from him!
VERDICT:
Sivaranjiniyum Innum Sila Pengalum is a relevant, hard hitting anthology set in 3 different decades that poetically dissects how women are stepped upon in the never changing, patriarchal, hardline society in India.
CELLULOID METER- 4/5:
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