In Sudakshinar Saree A Housewife Turns Her Passion Into A Business

In Sudakshinar Saree directed by Sudeshna Roy Abhijit Guha a housewife turns her love for sarees into a thriving empowering business.

Every individual (read woman) possesses certain latent potential/s. However, owing to the daily grind of domestic/married life, these remain dormant or surface rarely. In this context, the subtly feminist Bangala film Sudakshinar Saree is an eye-opener.

Sudakshina played by Srilekha Mitra, a 40-something college graduate-turned-homemaker, resides with her parents-in-law, spouse and son in a middle-class neighbourhood in north Kolkata. She has a fetish for sarees. Although she is ridiculed and scolded for her ‘odd’ passion, she takes it sportingly and continues her acquisition spree.

Isn’t it rather unfair considering that Sudakshina handles the bulk of the household chores? Only the father-in-law, the husband and a niece understand and tacitly support her. Her life continues in a hunk-dory manner until one day when she bumps into an old classmate of hers Prateek played by Badshah Moitra.

Rediscovering past self and passion

As the duo journey down memory lane, we discover how she used to be a cigarette-smoking, political activist, a gold medallist and a budding writer who abandoned everything to enter matrimony at the behest of her parents.

Fortunately, the husband has no qualms about his wife’s hanging around with her college buddy, Prateek. As a truly faithful friend, Prateek rekindles her ambition and creativity. Greatly motivated, Sudakshina delves into the history and antiquity of the saree.

Women should follow their passion like the protagonist Sudakshinar Saree

In the process, she stumbles upon weavers, artisans and craftsmen, wallowing in poverty and squalor. To help them, she hits upon the idea of setting up a boutique for advertising, marketing and selling their handiwork at prices they richly deserve. Her writing skills become a handy tool for creating ads. In no time, her brand of sarees becomes hugely popular. Even the cynical mother cannot help admiring her.

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The moral of the story is: the in-laws had better hone and harness the skills and qualities of the ‘bahu’ brigade. The outcome is bound to benefit the entire clan.

Sudakshinar Saree is currently streaming on Zee5.

Image source: Still from trailer of Sudakshinar Saree, edited on CanvaPro.

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