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Thaai Kizhavi (Tamil, 2026)
Written and Directed by: Sivakumar Murugesan
It is sometimes comical to see how relatives react to an ailing person in the family, especially in a close-knit Indian family. There is a common belief that clan members must stay with a dying relative to aid them into the next world. In reality, the truth is far from this.
Long-lost relatives and those who parted ways over various differences will appear out of the blue to show the world how good a person they are or how cordial their relationship was with the soon-to-be-departed. In reality, they are just there to squander anything lying around the house or to see whether they stand to inherit anything.
There she was, Pavunuthaai, a fiercely independent moneylender, an elderly lady feared by all the villagers. She was strict about collecting her money and had no qualms about verbally or physically abusing debtors who fell behind on their payments. Almost everyone in the village had borrowed money from her.
Pavunuthaai is the only woman in the village with a house to her name. She lives with her single-parent daughter and grandson. Pavunuthaai keeps a tight rein on everything she owns. She has three sons who live elsewhere.
Unexpectedly, one day, Pavunuthaai is found unresponsive. Expecting the worst, everybody gathers outside her house, including her debtors, her three sons, their wives, and the estranged son-in-law. They are not there in grief, but hoping she will succumb to her medical condition. The debtors would have their outstanding dues forfeited, and her sons (and wives) hope to inherit some of her wealth. Trouble arises when a jeweller drops in to say that Pavunuthaai had purchased 160 sovereigns of gold just the week before.
Suddenly, the relatives want her to survive, as they do not know the gold's whereabouts. So we see the comedy of villagers praying for her death, whilst the relatives go all out to ensure she survives the ordeal. They beg and borrow for medical treatment, hoping to lay their hands on the coveted jewellery.
It is a dark comedy about relatives and their antics as they deal with a wealthy relative. At the end of the show, there is a lesson on women's empowerment and financial independence within a family. Radhika holds the film together single-handedly, but the extras and familiar faces also do a decent job. 4.5/5
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