Sindhu Samaveli 2010

In a quiet village near the coastal stretch of Kanyakumari, the young Anbu stands out as a bright student in a local school where his mother also teaches. His father, Veerasami, serves as a CRPF soldier stationed far away in Assam, and the family’s world feels small and close-knit. His classmate, the older and resilient Sundari, develops feelings for him, adding a tender spark to their simple lives. When Veerasami suffers injuries in a militant attack and takes voluntary retirement to return home, the family’s dynamics shift with a newfound closeness. The happiness is short-lived, however, as tragedy strikes when Anbu’s mother dies after a snakebite, leaving the household and the young son-dad duo reeling from loss and grief. Amid the sorrow, Anbu clings to a noble dream: to honor his mother by becoming a teacher herself always wished, and to carry her memory forward through education for other children.

As the dust settles, pressure from Veerasami and relatives pushes Anbu toward an arranged marriage with the woman he admires, Sundari. The couple weds, but their union is brief; Anbu must soon leave for teachers’ training, leaving Sundari to care for her new father-in-law and hold the house together. The distance strains the fragile ties, and Veerasami’s heart grieves in a way that turns dangerous. He quietly longs for a sexual companion after his wife’s death, and the close proximity to Sundari—while Anbu is away—awakens a disturbing desire. A dangerous moment occurs when Veerasami tries to force intimacy after rescuing Sundari from a fall, and the guilt-drenched scene culminates in a brutal act. Sundari regains consciousness, traumatized, and the pair briefly falter before attempting to pretend nothing happened.

Their illicit relationship evolves in secret. Veerasami’s drinking grows heavier, and he sleeps outside the home for long stretches, while Sundari becomes the one who navigates a precarious balance—feeding him, cooking for him, and providing the sexual favors that keep him tied to the arrangement. In return, Veerasami showers her with gifts, buying her outfits that push their bond into a reckless, dangerous space. They even drift into public life together, going to movies as if their taboo liaison could withstand the light of day. The uneasy peace between them is fragile but relentless, a symbiotic cruelty that hardens both of them.

When Anbu returns, the truth of the situation cannot be hidden any longer. He seeks closeness with Sundari, but she resists, torn between her love for him and the life she has become entangled in. The rivalry between father and son for the same affection intensifies, and Sundari’s heartbreak deepens after she reads a magazine article penned by Anbu that hints at a possible relationship between Sundari and Veerasami, while also professing his deep love for her. Devastated, Sundari makes a catastrophic choice and dies under a moving train. The tragedy leaves behind a chilling realization: Anbu uncovers a hidden camera under the village tree, where a recording reveals Sundari’s confession—that Veerasami raped her and that she felt she had no way to live with the love she had found. The film then cuts to a boat where both men have been drinking, and back to the camera-driven confession that seals her fate.

Enraged and betrayed, Anbu confronts Veerasami with questions that cut to the core of moral injury and desire. Veerasami, in a state of drunken clarity, blurts out a flippant, brutal arithmetic of beauty, betrayal, and blame, suggesting that if Sundari could cheat, why wouldn’t his wife have done the same while he was serving? The confrontation spirals into violence as Anbu, furious, rams a hole in the boat, water flooding in as he contemplates the life he’s chosen and the parents who shaped him. He ultimately abandons the sinking vessel, leaving Veerasami to drown in the sea’s cold grip.

The story closes with Anbu returning to that tree near his home, where he feels his mother’s spirit watching over him. He makes a quiet, solemn vow to become the teacher his mother dreamed of, to educate countless children, and to fulfill her wishes—carrying the weight of a painful legacy into a future he hopes to shape with wisdom and care. He walks away from the house, stepping into an uncertain horizon, the memory of his family’s tragedy etched into his steps and into the village’s quiet air.