Anantham review: Imperfect but heartfelt stories about acceptance

‘If only these walls could talk’

It’s a common phrase, often used to speak of unknown stories. In Priya V’s series Anantham, they do. Well, not literally, but in spirit. Anantham is about the eponymously named house, and the various people and their families who have inhabited it over five decades. It’s a bouquet of stories — a mosaic of emotions. There’s a bit of everything — grief, loss, love, romance, fear, discovery, anger, etc. For some, the house heaps fortunes. And for others, disasters. Its inhabitants are mostly people who society raises their eyebrows at — blind people, unemployed debtors, three single women living together, a gay couple… But the cornerstone of Anantham is acceptance.

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Ms Representation: What makes a woman?

Mard Ki Body. This was the comment Taapsee Pannu received when her look for Rashmi Rocket was unveiled. The Pink actor sports a tough, sinewy look to play the role of a medal-winning international athlete. Our society, however, ascribes that description only to a male. Responding to the comment, Taapsee wrote, “Many women actually hear this daily for no fault of theirs. An ode to all the athletes who give their sweat and blood to the sport and their nation and still get to hear this.”

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Ms Representation: A journey through time to denigrate women

A clip from Santhanam’s latest Zee5 release Dikkiloona made waves on social media (no, it’s not Anagha dancing to Per Vechalum). In this trending clip, Mani (Santhanam) criticises a woman for wearing a little black dress. “Freedom is not living as per your wishes but living in a manner that’s acceptable to society,” says Mani, who probably graduated in freedom at the Whatsapp University. The clincher comes next. He says, “Konjam izhutha avundhrum, idhu suthanthiram”. The first question is, why should someone tug on her dress? Let’s bypass that for a moment though. Mani is wearing a veshti in the said scene. Is he saying his ‘virtuous’ veshti would not come off were someone to tug at it?

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Kalavu review: A neatly planned theft

The plot of Zee 5’s latest release, Kalavu, is held together by an incident of theft. Hence, the title. But there’s also another thread that connects the main characters of Kalavu together: Lies. It isn’t a coincidence that Kalavu opens with a couplet structured like a Thirukkural. The Thirukkural, in one of its verses, says that even a lie will be placed on par with the truth if it gives unblemished returns. The film begins with white lies: A son lies to his parents about drinking; a man lies to his friends to make them meet him. But as the plot unfolds, the lies grow darker and so does the intent. Kalavu acts as more of a reminder of our clandestine selves.

Read the full review at:

https://www.cinemaexpress.com/reviews/tamil/2019/feb/10/kalavu-review-a-neatly-planned-theft-10042.html

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