Tamil film Baaram in race for UNESCO medal at IFFI

Baaram is a 92-minute Tamil film directed and produced by Priya Krishnaswamy. 

The film revolves around a widowed night-watchman, Karuppaswamy and his sons during his last days, when he is subjected to the practice of Thalaikoothal (Senicide ). A veteran film-editor, Priya Krishnaswamy made her directorial debut with Gangoobai produced by National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) in 2013. 

Addressing a press conference at media centre here on Friday, she said, “When I read about elderly infirm parents being dispatched with a cold head-bath (‘Thalaikoothal’) and getting killed, and heard this had social sanction, I was shocked. I was able to contemplate the issue only after watching an episode of Satyameva Jayate.” In the film, Karuppasamy, lives with his sister and three nephews in a small town in Tamil Nadu. While returning from his shift one morning, he hurts his lip in an accident.

While his nephews want him to be treated in town, his son takes him to his ancestral village to be healed by a traditional healer. After eight days, Karuppasamy dies.

Priya Krishnaswamy is a national-award winning director. Her directorial debut Gangoobai (2013) travelled to over 20 film festivals, including MAMI and IFFI. An FTII alumna, she has been a film editor since 1988.