As I was scrolling through Twitter, I came across an intriguing tweet: “If a woman is rich, smart, and independent, but still single, what could be the problem?” There were countless responses, suggesting reasons like having a bad attitude, being too masculine, toxic, or too loud. I couldn’t figure out what the real reason might be. Then, the movie Kannagi came to mind. Because, many couldn’t understand the third character that movie.
When I watched “Kannagi,” I had mixed feelings. I couldn’t relate to all the characters, yet the movie left an impact. I searched for reviews from different writers but didn’t find much. So, I thought I’d share my thoughts.
For context, I don’t identify as a feminist rn. I listen to Scott Galloway sometimes (never AT, IYKYK). This movie offered a different perspective on women’s behavior.
The movie revolves around four different types of women. One is waiting to get married, another is going through a divorce, the third is in a live-in relationship, and the last has had an abortion. These four characters represent different phases of the female protagonist’s life, who ends up writing a book.
In the first phase, she wants to get married, but her mother finds reasons to reject every suitor. The movie shows her suffering through each meeting. After her father’s death, she ends up with someone because of societal pressure, so she obeys her mother and gets married.
In the second phase, she believes marriage is the answer to everything. She thinks it will help her fit into society. When her husband files for divorce, she refuses to agree because of her beliefs. She eventually gets frustrated and leaves the marriage, without her parents’ support.
As time passes, she falls in love with her lawyer who helped during the divorce. Things seems fine between them. They plan to marry, but he isn’t ready and gives her false hope. This shatters her faith in marriage.
In the third phase, the repeated failures make her develop an attitude that some might piss off people. She no longer wants to marry because of her past trauma. Her views of marriage changes from protection to something which bring out only problems. When she meets a caring guy and asks for marriage, her past experiences bring out her worst fears. She pushes him away in an unpleasant manner.
It would be really hard to view these scenes from the female lead’s perspective. The focus tends to be on the guy who got rejected. He did nothing wrong. He was simply caring for her and loving her. This is where her trauma is both exposed yet hidden within the scenes.
In the final phase, she gets pregnant from a past relationship and doesn’t know how to handle it. She reaches out to a man she once considered marrying. He helps her get an abortion. They are both at low points in their lives. He is struggling to get a movie produced, and she doesn’t want the baby. The movie beautifully portrays their pain. They understand each other and decide to stay together. I’m not sure why they have decided to stay together – maybe because of the baby, his first love, or acceptance of who she is. Not sure!
The movie highlights how life’s incidents shape her decisions. It shows how life events shape our choices, Perhaps it could have emphasized mental health more, and I wish there had been more focus on healing from the trauma. Kannagi shows the complexities of relationships and the impact of societal expectations on women’s lives.
Cheers
PS: Broken? I replied.
Check out similar posts: Movie reviews (Hotspot , Badgirl)
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3 thoughts on “Kannagi Movie : Understanding Complexities!”