Moral message in a movie

THERE is greater interest for Malaysian Tamil films with cinemas filling up, especially among the youth who are followers of certain directors or actors.

This is clearly evident with Vedigundhu Passangge, directed by Vimala Perumal, which managed to collect more than RM1mil at the box office. It marks the first time that a local Tamil film has achieved such a record.

The latest Tamil film to hit the silver screen is Thirudathey Papa Thirudathey (TPT), directed by Shalini Balasundaram.

Shalini drew from her own experience of being a victim of robbery (three times!) for her latest effort.

The movie tells the story of a family’s blissful life which gets shattered when gangsters invade and rob them of their hard earned money. When the mother of the family identifies the crooks, she gets killed. Her son vows revenge.

The director said she hopes TPT will help open the eyes of Malaysians to the social crisis that has hit the local Indian community.

She referred to a case in 2017 involving Indian teenager, Nhaveen Thirumaran in Penang who died after being beaten by a group of guys. “The case is a well-known one and what’s sad is that all the attackers are still teenagers. Something must be done to prevent this social issue which continues to be a chronic problem of the Indian community,” she said.

“I do not want to just create a movie for entertainment. My goal is to deliver moral messages in my movies.”