Systemic Failure Has Infiltrated The Family- Priya Krishnaswamy

Priya Krisnaswamy, director of Tamil movie 'Baram' is of the opinion that alternate cinema has great social transformative potential and that it is really a good thing that alternate cinema is getting good OTT platforms. Baaram which means burden, is a Tamil film directed & produced by Priya Krisnaswamy, which revolves around a widowed night watchman, Karuppaswamy and his sons during his last days, when he is subjected to the practice of Thalaikoothal. A veteran film-editor ,Priya Krishnaswamy made her directorial debut with Gangoobai produced by NFDC in 2013.“When I read news about elderly infirm parents being despatched with a cold head-bath (‘Thalaikoothal’) and getting killed, and heard this had social sanction, I could not believe it; until I saw Satyameva Jayate by Aamir Khan who foregrounded the issue.” Priya Krishnaswamy said she then decided to do a documentary on this. She found out there were 26 documented ways to kill the elderly and that this practice is prevalent not only in south India but also in north India as well as in other countries.My film “Baaram is based on true events; I find it incredible, it is all about humanity. As a mother, daughter and grand-daughter, I cannot believe that we have lost out on our humanity. When we lose out on these values, we lose out on kindness, gentleness. It had social sanction, there were traditional killers and it was being done for free. What began as tradition and was for free is now a business with brokers and commissions.”When we talk about cultural messaging, this is the country that wants sons, yet the ones who murder the elderly are the sons themselves. We don’t have social infrastructure to take care of the elderly. This systemic failure has infiltrated the family as well. The breakdown of the joint family is a problem that I want to showcase through this movie. When we lose out on a generation before us, we lose out on kindness, wisdom, culture, cuisine. Hence I wanted to tell a story about this, said Krishnaswamy.

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