| Maadaathy | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Leena Manimekalai |
| Screenplay by | Leena Manimekalai Rafiq Ismail Yavanika Sriram |
| Produced by | Leena Manimekalai & Elango Raghupathy |
| Starring |
|
| Cinematography | Jeff Dolen Karthik Muthukumar Abinandhan Ramanujam |
| Edited by | Thangaraj Palanivel |
| Music by | Karthik Raja |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 90 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Tamil |
Maadathy, [1] also known internationally as Maadathy: An Unfairy Tale, is a 2019 Indian-Tamil language folklore drama film directed by Leena Manimekalai. The film stars Ajmina Kassim, Patrick Raj, Semmalar Annam and Arul Kumar in the lead roles.
The film received a positive critical response and was premiered at the Busan International Film Festival 2019. [2] The film later got released in the OTT platform Neestream globally on 24, June 2021. [3]
The film is set against the backdrop of a river which acts as a symbol of the oppressor and the oppressed. The river is a way out, for the lead character a Dalit, Yosana; a liberation from the blind realities of caste. India is a land of Subaltern deities. Each deity has a unique legend, and these legends are often interwoven with sociohistoric tropes of India. Puthirai vannaar is an 'unseeable' Dalit caste group, in southern India. Their forced-occupation is to wash clothes of other Dalits, the dead and the menstruating women. This film is a tale about a young girl who grew up in Puthirai vannaar caste group and how she came to be immortalized as their local deity, Maadathy.
A critic from The News Minute reviewed "It's rare to see a film where the male body is subjected to the female gaze". [5] The Cinema Express wrote, "Remarkably exudes the power of cinema, of storytelling that is poignantly reflective of a society where legends of sin circle and haunt our deities". [6]