Beyond Hindi: Regional films every cinephile should watch

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Regional Movies
DailyO.in

There is much more that comprises Indian cinema than just Bollywood. Sadly, we still don’t pay as much attention to regional cinema as we should. But regional cinema has movies that are absolute gems and deserve to be enjoyed by lovers of good cinema. Wedding Affair brings to you terrific Non-hindi regional movies that you should immediately add to your watch-list.

Sairat (Marathi)

This critically acclaimed and commercially successful film is a riveting tale of class and caste discrimination that stops two young lovers from living a fulfilling life. When Parshya (a low-caste, fisherman’s son) falls in love with Archi (the daughter of a wealthy, upper-class landlord), he pursues and expresses his feelings to her. Since Archi’s family objects to their relationship, the two elope and begin a new life together in Hyderabad. After a few differences and financial struggles, their lives seem to be smooth-sailing till destiny takes an unexpected turn.

Kumbalangi Nights (Malayalam)

Set in the small village of Kumbalangi, on the outskirts of Kochi, the movie revolves around a dysfunctional family of four brothers. They have distinct personalities and are always at odds with each other. However, when a crisis arises, they unite and function together. The narrative also touches upon the importance of consent and toxic masculinity. Watch it for the beautiful cinematography, a gripping story, and Fahadh Faasil’s spine-chilling acting.

Village Rockstars (Assamese)

This award-winning regional film was selected as India’s official entry into the 91st Academy Awards. In it, ten-year-old Dhunu aspires to own a guitar and form her own rock band. She lives in the small village of Chaygaon, Assam. Owing to financial constraints, Dhunu starts saving money to make her dream come true. However, fate has some other plans for her and at a time of crisis, Dhunu must sort her priorities.

Macher Jhol (Bangla)

A movie plot surrounding a son trying to ace  ‘Maacher Jhol’. A Bengali’s obsession with fish trickles down with a mustard-laced flavour of modern values in this 2017 drama. Paris-based chef Dev D (Ritwick Chakraborty) is Kolkata-bound after 13 years to see his ailing mother (Mamata Shankar). Back home, the father-son bond is strained because the father doesn’t understand why his engineer son became a cook. His mother wants him to cook the Maacher Jhol (fish curry) that he had prepared before leaving the house. Sadly, years of estrangement and conditioned sophistication stand between him and the simple curry. As he struggles to remember the perfect recipe, he also stumbles upon the ingredients to mend his frosty filial bonds.

Super Deluxe (Tamil)

Thiagarajan Kumararaja’s thriller has four subplots all connected by a common thread. In all these subplots, the characters have committed sins (according to society) and are trying to deal with it. The film is packed with social commentary, humour, pop culture references, and giving away more than that would be an injustice to the film. It also boasts of an absolutely terrific performance by Vijay Sethupathi as a transwoman. That’s enough for you to leave everything that you’re doing and just watch this film. The biggest strength of the film is the characters. In spite of the many interesting characters (and excellent actors) that share screen space, one can understand and empathise with them.

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