Poke at social norms from a leftist!

Sila Nerangalil Sila Manithargal (Sometimes Some people, Tamil;1975)

Director Bhimsingh

I have heard of this film, its rave reviews and how it catapulted actress Lakshmi into superstardom, unlike her contemporaries who stayed afloat because of their willingness to shed more to reveal more skin than they ought to rather than flash the acting prowess. Of course, there were the demure actress Vanishree who stayed away from the Tamil movie scene as she only wanted to show off her acting talent, that is all.

SNSM is a movie based on a controversial journalist/writer from Tamil Nadu named Jayakanthan. He is a self-professed leftist and communist accused of being arrogant for his crossing path with most known leaders of his era, including EV Ramaswamy and DMK and D.K. leaders.

The story starts on a wet rainy evening when the evening is eager to return home. At a bus station waits a Brahmin college girl, Ganga (Lakshmi)- (it had to be Brahmin to incur the wrath of the Brahmins as this move did) for her bus. Her bus never arrives. A car stops in front of her and the door. The audience is not shown the occupant or driver as the camera shoots from the inside of the vehicle. Also waiting nearby is a part-time writer and school librarian, RKV (Nagesh), who is watching the whole fiasco. He secretly hopes she does not enter the car, but Ganga enters it anyway to escape the unrelenting rain.

As predictable, rainy weather and a drenched young girl is a recipe for rape in a Tamil movie, and so it was. Ganga returns home to relate the incident to her mother, who strongly admonishes her predicament. Living in an extended family and a small house, her brother overhears it. She is banished from the home and is sent off to stay at her uncle's (mother's brother) house to continue her studies. All the bashing made her think that she indeed thinks she is 'damaged good', so she does not flinch at her uncle's inappropriate conduct.

Ganga graduates and assumes an excellent managerial post.
She leads a simple boring life worried about her future after being drilled down her psyche that she cannot be a wife but only a concubine.

Her meeting with RKV, who wrote a novel with his own imagination on the possible outcome of the incident on the rainy day, gives her a chance to meet her rapist, Prabhu (Srikanth)- who is a Brahmin too!
The rest of the story is about how they become friends to become the talk of the neighbourhood for becoming a mistress. Prabhu was actually married at the time of the rape. He is in an unhappy marriage with 3 kids. He is a changed man who has left his philandering ways and buries himself in alcohol.
Their relationship matures into love. Conforming to social norms, Prabhu proposes Ganga to get married to someone else. After her failed attempts in changing Prabhu's heart, Ganga decides to stay celibate. She sits alone in a white saree without a vermillion on her forehead like a widow as though keeping her 'chastity' for her rapist!

Jayakanthan

Jayakanthan, the thinker, questions some of the accepted norms in society. He ridicules how the fault always falls on the girl when she is raped or becomes a mistress, and society expects her to be chaste for her man even though it takes two to tango.
To sort of mock at society for its social norms, he quotes instances in the Indian mythologies where
an example can be found of exception to the social rules and is acceptable by all!

Memorable dialogue: Ganga reading a book by Gandhi, "At time of the rape, one should not practise ahimsa (satyagraha) but on the contrary be violent with all the God-given defence like nail and hand!"

P.S. I remember my Brahmin friend related how his community was up in arms with the writer and the film for choosing a Brahmin rapist and victim.