Swayamvaram

Swayamvaram (1973) : Brief Review -

Adoor Gopalakrishnan pioneers French-style new wave cinema in the Malayalam film industry. Adoor Gopalakrishnan's name needs no introduction, and if you want to know where it all began, then this is where you should start. *Swayamvaram* is based on the theme of marriage-by the girl's choice. In our male-dominated society, women rarely get the freedom to choose their life partners. But in ancient times, there existed the concept of *Swayamvaram*-a privilege reserved only for queens, not for the poor. Maa Sita's Swayamvaram have her Lord Ram, but she had to face 12 years of exile, raise her children without their father, and eventually sink into the earth because society didn't believe in her chastity. Now ask yourself-was her choice of Lord Ram as a husband the right one, considering everything she had to endure? From her perspective, it was the right choice. Adoor Sir's Swayamvaram is a modern-day adaptation of this Sita's tale. The central female character is named Sita. She marries a man of her own choice-Vishwam. The two elope and begin a new life immediately after their marriage. They try to build a happy home, but that dream doesn't materialize. Instead, they are confronted with countless challenges and daily struggles. Vishwam often asks Sita one painful question: *Did we do the right thing (by marrying)?* Sita always smiles and encourages him, because their love remains unbroken, even in the worst of times. In the final frame, Sita is seen staring at a picture of Maa Sita and the locked door of the house. A devastating image, I must say. It evokes a staggering thought for mainstream Indian audiences. Adoor Sir's vision, storytelling, and cinematic framework echo the French and German classics of the 1930s and 40s. Madhu and Sharada deliver heartfelt performances, while Adoor Bhavani treats audiences to a naturally compelling act. Altogether, this is a thought-provoking and emotionally traumatic experience that offers a glimpse into the aftermath of love marriages-narrated through the eyes of the couple. It also shows the picture of society through their lenses. Indeed, a devastating film and a cinematic treat for true art lovers.

RATING - 7/10*

By - #samthebestest.

Poverty is a disease and in many parts of the world it has epidemic proportions. This powerful film is set in such a milieu. Poverty becomes unbearable if you are severed from your roots of family and village in such a society. The middle class has the worst of all worlds because it doesn't know where it belongs.

Vishwam and Seetha elope from their village and we are introduced to them on a seemingly endless journey through the rural landscapes of this lush riverine state. A few days of honeymooning in a humble but respectable motel soon ends and life begins it's nose dive.Thet are educated and probably hope to make a living but this is not to be. The little money they have is running out and the wolf in many garbs is snarling. He can't publish a book he has written and loses his first job as a zoology lecturer. Many a ruffian eyes Seetha lasciviously and maintaining respectability on an empty pocket is as difficult as bodily survival. First the spirit breaks an then the body. And then a child comes along.

This is Adoor's first film and we find the mastery and restraint of his maturer work evident only as a future promise.But this is a slice of reality, scary, painful and bitter in which we can see our own reflections. Both the leads (Madhu and Sarada) have given powerful performances well supported by the remaining cast. The social realism of the film reflects a point of view widely prevalent among the intelligentsia of the period.

This is a depressing, powerful and true film getting to the heart of the realities of the life of ordinary people which Bollywood has only been caricaturing and turning into tomfoolery.

This Malayalam film is an ode to the spirit of a woman. You will walk out of the film with an appreciation of the inner strength that women possess. You will start noticing and respecting this innate capability of women to not compromise, and do whatever it takes when they make a decision.

Sita, the character played marvellously by Sharada is one such. With many movies and multiple National Awards to her credit, Sharada still gives every role her 100%, as seen in this film. You won't believe that the one who plays Sita here is the one who played the alluring "Yakshi" in that film.

The storyline is about an eloped couple and their struggles to make ends meet. After a long depiction of their hardships, it only anti-climaxes with the death of the husband to an illness, leaving Sita with an infant to care for.

However, she is independent. She has chosen this journey and it's hers. She looks poignantly at the Sita Swayamvaram painting, after refusing to go back to her father's, determined to face life herself.

The excess of melancholy could have been avoided. And instead the film could have ended showing her ascent against all odds instead than leaving it open-ended.