‘Sillu Karuppatti’ directed by Haleetha Shameem has finally seen the light of the day after gathering accolades at the Chennai International Film Festival. The title in itself is intriguing in the sense that it tries to describe a certain form of abstractness to the closest and meaningful form with an earthly snack. Sillu Karuppatti is a jaggery based snack with a dash of pepper and ginger that helps digestion.
Not many would have got the nuance of the title and its relation to the film’s content. The film commands a curated audience who would appreciate the finer and tender things in life rather than the ones looking for larger than life personalities or happenings out of mundaneness. This, in my opinion, is the merit and demerit for the film and its potential commercial success.
The movie encompasses 4 strands of stories depicting pure unfiltered love, with different personas at different stages of their life. In simple words, it is the love between couples of various age groups. Be it the tender love between a rag picker and an upper-class girl in their teens, or the mature love between the 60 + year old couple, or the renewal of a sagging marital life of a middle-aged couple after a decade of marriage or the romance between a young couple with one experiencing testing times. The common thread that cuts across these stories is empathy.
Love blossoming through empathy is one of the most organic and pragmatic paths to kick start a relationship. That doesn’t take age or gender (at times) into account. This very essence of the blossoming of a relationship was poignantly captured through these 4 stories. Though the engagement factor of these stories varied, the recurring theme remained the same.
The most enjoyable one was the last episode (Hello Ammu) where Samuthirakani and Sunaina play the middle-aged couple who desperately seek to renew and rekindle their marital bliss after being challenged with mundane and routine happenings.
It brings out the simple yearnings of a housewife and the misunderstandings that crop up in a relationship due to trivial issues. Of course, the movie uses contemporary technology such as the AI-powered Alexa to find the solution which was quite liberating.
The weakest of the stories would be the first one (Pink Bag). Though the lives of rag pickers were depicted quite well, the story became run-of-the-mill as a traditional romance between a downtrodden boy and an upper society girl. We don’t get to see whether they managed to unite or not, but what we end up is with the blossoming of a relationship, which could be fodder for a whole new movie!
‘Kaaka Kadi’, the story of a guy who is fighting for his life and the stranger he happens to meet (and eventually fall in love) through rideshare had some bold strokes. It discusses ‘taboo’ topics and stands testimony to the fact that our Tamil films have come of age in terms of handling mature content.
‘Turtle’, which depicts the love between a 60-year aged couple was another mature and double-edged sword that was handled with ‘dignity’. The lines and the scenes imbibed dignity again and again. The performances were neither noteworthy nor cringe-worthy, which was even more vital.
It was relieving to see Samuthirakani in a very relaxed and ‘loose’ role that was purposefully engineered with flaws. It was a whiff of fresh air from the person whom we’ve seen as a social reformer in many of his previous roles. Sunaina too has given a very matured and effortless performance that was noteworthy. Manigandan (Kaaka Kadi episode) was another flash in the pan who conveyed pain and hope with priceless subtleness.
The movie had some great lines and even a funny verse (‘Katti irukuravanukku Katti kudupaangala..’) that tickled raw nerves. The characters were close to real life and often we could relate to their day-to-day situation. However, the innate slowness in the proceedings and the offbeat appeal has kept the mainstream audience from flocking towards it.
It has a festival appeal and might do well only with a niche group of audiences who would appreciate finesse over a fast-paced narrative. Now that we truly realize the reason for its title. Sillu Karuppatti may not appeal to everyone’s taste buds, but it certainly makes a mark among its niche target.
Verdict: Niche appeal!
Rating: 2.75 / 5
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