SPOILER ALERT: The following content contains multiple spoilers for the movie Ante Sundaraniki.
Guess who went to the movies recently and came out filled with pride and hope? Buckle in y’all, today we’re gushing. While a proper review of this movie is coming soon, I knew I needed a separate space to point out the subtle brilliance displayed in this movie.
Leaving the Morality to the Audience
Sure, the narrative overall does take sides on some things, but there were many questions left unanswered, leaving us to decide for ourselves. This is great because morality tends to be shown in such a (false) black and white context in our movies. It was refreshing to see truly flawed characters that weren’t objectively horrible people. As much as Telugu cinema may have led us to believe so, no one is completely “moral” or “immoral”. We are not a binary. *wink*
Here are some of the questions that came up for me:
Were Sundaram and Leela right or wrong for lying to their parents about something like pregnancy? Are oppressed and/or minority community members right in their active efforts towards staying away from privileged communities to avoid negative experiences? Should interactions between kids and parents be transactional? How and when do we decide to prioritize self-interests over familial obligations? How far should child safety be taken? What is the use of progressive messaging when we don’t see change in actuality? Do we believe every coincidence has a larger meaning behind it/that it’s a sign? When it comes to community, how do we draw the line between sharing our burdens/problems and asking for support? Does infertility invalidate or remove from personhood? Should you take on health concerns of a partner?
Yes, I got all of that and more from those two-something hours.
Differentiating Pregnancy from Parenthood
Throughout the movie, pregnancy is tied to having kids (as it has been, wrongfully so – my thoughts on this here). In the hospital scene, Sundaram says pregnancy is not a compulsion. This is HUGE. This acknowledges that pregnancy and parenthood are separate, as they should be. Whoever wrote that very line – *chef’s kiss*. With everyone from strangers to loved ones having an opinion on what I should do with my uterus and when, I was moved to tears when I heard that line.
Wielding Hindu Privilege
Privilege affords an averting gaze and a shrugging shoulder to problems that aren’t ours. What does this do? It leaves injustices unseen and unheard unless the people victimized by the system choose to scream to the skies. When, and if, that injustice comes to attention, it becomes the resounding story about that group told over, and over, and over again – removing from their holistic experience. Over time, unfortunately, the point tends to be lost as well.
Don’t believe me? Let’s reflect. How many times is a woman’s problem in Telugu movies street harassment and/or sexual harassment? Of all the countless movies that popped in your mind, how many dealt with the actual fucking problem – the system and society that facilitate and produce more and more perpetrating men? Now, how many times was that story used to elevate the other (read as: masculine) characters in the movie? See? Point lost. Oh wait, rather, you don’t see it – because it’s so far gone.
While I personally do not know Vivek Athreya (hello, Universe? Sending a signal), nor do I know how religious they are, from my internet scouring, they do seem to be Hindu, at least on paper. This gives them power and space. If you think I’m wrong about this, tell me, how many stories about non-Hindu Telugu people have you heard? Trust me, they’re not a myth. How many stories about Hindu Telugu people have you heard? See what I mean? Yes, I know this is an appreciation post but we’re never done reflecting at The Maguva Narrative.
Normalization of Straying Away from Gender Norms
I’ve heard and witnessed multiple conversations about whether the Telugu audience is ready for nontraditional storylines and characters. Instead of waiting around for people to be ready, Vivek Athreya went right ahead and spun this movie into existence. There are plenty of gender norm-defying scenes in our movies, yes, I know. But most of them are inflated, overridden by loud and unnecessary music. Why? Because when a woman is being anything other than dainty and “traditional”, the only way society is willing to digest it is if she’s the exception. So her acts are never accepted or acknowledged as being normal. The exaggerated effects make said actions look like an exceptional case. Coming back to the movie in question, that’s what makes the proposal scene special. Leela is the one that proposes to Sundaram because that’s who she is, a go-getter. There’s no special mention of the woman being the one to propose, it just happens.
Honoring the Supporting Characters
A lot of supporting characters don’t seem to be given much thought behind the scenes. For reference, think of whatever character actor Subbaraju plays when they are in a movie starring Mahesh Babu – they’re brilliant and well-rounded one second, and unbelievably stupid the next. It doesn’t make sense. It usually boils down to two things – making the lead roles look better, or sacrificing the integrity of these characters for the sake of the storyline.
In this movie, there are characters we don’t get to see a lot of, but that’s okay. Whatever we see of them, however, makes sense. We’re never left wondering whether the character had an aneurysm in between scenes.
The parents of both the lead characters were written beautifully. When a movie revolves around lies told by the protagonists (which is pretty common), the people around them believe them pretty easily. In this movie, we get to see two sets of parents that have a wide range of emotions and very different ways of expressing those emotions. When told the web of lies, they behave in a way that seems believable. They’re not there as pawns, but as whole people that add substance and value to the story.
Conclusion
I don’t think the entire industry has changed over this one movie. I know it hasn’t. I also know, that there will be a slew of movies that will come out, disappoint, and hurt me. But that won’t remove from what this movie has given me. This was monumental because I’m a Telugu woman and I deserve to sit in the theater and feel seen and respected. I deserve to sit in the theater, and not think, “You have to let it go, it’s just a movie.” Which is no way what we should be thinking.
Before I end, let me set the scene:
You’re in the theater, the credits are rolling, and you’re looking for your belongings. While you make sure you sipped those last drops of soda and ate that last bit of popcorn, if you’re wondering whether Sundaram and Leela end up having kids, go ahead, buy another ticket and watch the movie again.
Vivek Athreya, we see you, and we’re here for it.
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