It’s an issue that is both open and closed at the same time. We are talking here about the age-old practice of ‘thalaikoothal’, literally meaning cold water head bath, which is a polite euphemism for the practice of mercy-killing, where, in some parts of Tamil Nadu, the elderly are dispatched through lethal injections or pills, Supposedly to end their suffering. But is this a form of organised crime? Does this kind of an end for the elderly tantamount to cold-blooded murder? Now, writer, director and editor Priya Krishnaswamy’s Tamil feature film “Baaram’ (The Burden) parts the curtains on this gruesome tradition in a way that has had viewers shaken and stirred. She brings to mainstream filmmaking a subject many would be in the dark about. The film becomes essential viewing as it also poses an ethical dilemma for the viewers, which comes as baggage with the term ‘mercy-killing’.
Through her extensive research, Priya reveals that there are 26 different ways of putting the elderly to rest. One of these is to shove mud down their throats. So aware are the aged of this practice that some even ask for mud from their own land as they believe it will grant them salvation. Then there are others who leave home so they don’t fall prey to thalaikoothal. The 91-minute film focusing on elder abuse, set in rural Tamil Nadu, is based on true incidents. It was not only a part of the Indian Panorama section of the 49th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) but also one among the 12 films nominated for the International Council for Film, Television and Audio-Visual Communication (ICFT) UNESCO Gandhi Medal. This medal is given to a film that best reflects Mahatma Gandhi’s ideals of peace, tolerance and non-violence.
This story is from the January 2020 edition of Dignity Dialogue.
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This story is from the January 2020 edition of Dignity Dialogue.
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