Cast: Manickam, Ashwin, Prasana Balachandran
Music: Bindu Malini
Direction: Tamizh
Pig is generally referred to as ‘Pandri’ in Tamil. Seththumaan felt like a Tamil zoological name of pig. Watching the film, I learnt it could be how it is referred to in the Kongu dialect of Tamil. The film takes place in the western parts of Tamil Nadu during the time when Ramnath Govind, who is from a scheduled caste, was elected as the president of the country. We hear the news of the presidential elections in background radio throughout the film. Though a scheduled caste person has become the president, the struggles of other people from the same caste haven’t vanished.
The film’s protagonist Poochi (Manickam) walks a very long way with his grandson Kumaresan (Ashwin) for his school. It’s a terrific opening sequence that establishes the characters, their geographies and position in the social hierarchy. It starts with Poochi & Kumaresan walking through barren land, stopping for a bit, walking again carrying Kumaresan on his shoulders until they reach school. Poochi respectfully pleads with the school teacher to make Kumaresan study better. At that same time, we see Ranga dropping his daughter. Unlike Poochi, he is demanding. He drops her daughter in his two-wheeler. Later Poochi reaches his landlord’s house, where we see the landlord’s son going to a private school in a car.
The film largely revolves around Poochi, Kumaresan, Ranga & landlord Vellaiyan (Prasana Balachandran). Velliyan and some other people in the town are interested in Seththuman meat, which is despised by many as they think its a meat that certain caste people eat. Meat is an issue that runs throughout the film. In the amazing prologue sequence in drawings, we see the story of Poochi and Kumaresan. Kumerasan’s parents were killed in a caste riot which was instigated because of cow meat.
The film’s beauty is in the simplicity and how well it conveys the story emotionally. While Pocchi’s struggle is to get his grandson educated, Vellaiyan’s struggle is his fight with his cousin over a neem tree. Their fight looks silly, but this fight leads to some tragic events. The climax is haunting and what amazed me was how there was a precursor scene to the haunting climax. The final frame will stay in your mind for quite a long time.
Verdict: Seththumaan is a gem with simple and a very affecting storytelling
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