Sexy Durga

A man and a woman find themselves doing the same thing again and again in Sanal Kumar Sasidharan's crime drama, Sexy Durga. What is about to happen or you think might and can happen to them is what is recurring in the real world that the film so hauntingly, and to an extent successfully, reflects. Two characters, both confused and hapless thanks to their circumstance, are forced to seek help from the indifferent society at large to get them from A to B. What they get is what they fear - not policemen who understand the ways of love and internet but four weapon smugglers who have tongues that spew lava and airs that can make you lose control of your bladder. The arresting visuals, be that of men hung from hooks going through their skin or a menacing little van designed like a concert, are enough to make you feel vulnerable throughout the 85 minutes of long, long takes and an overall ominous setting that tells you something bad is about to happen. Sexy Durga, despite losing its three letters, is a remarkable critique of the dangerous and unchanging times we live in. TN.

(As part of the Young Film Critics Lab 2017 at the 19th Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival.)