By Ritwika Sharma

Long before I forayed neck-deep into the treasure trove of Malayalam cinema, I was apprised of its ingenuity by friends who understand cinema much better than I do. Fuelled by my inquisitiveness about regional cinema in India (and a hat-tip from a movie aficionado), I chanced upon Sudani from Nigeria (Malayalam, 2018). If you are not already intrigued by the geographically amusing name, or the fact that football constitutes much of the basic premise of this movie, then watch this gem simply because it is a befitting reminder of the inherent goodness of people. The movie brims with endearing visuals, reactions to which may range from a warm smile to hearty laughter.

The movie acquires its title (‘Sudani.’ From ‘Nigeria!’ But how? Why?) in the most assuming fashion. This is when the tone of the movie is set – it is going to be the most human of human stories, with not too much ear-shattering melodrama. Set in Malappuram, Kerala, Sudani follows the story of Majeed (Soubin Shahir), the manager of a local football team, and one of his players Samuel a.k.a. Sudu (Samuel Abiola Robinson), who happens to be of Nigerian descent. Due to an unfortunate turn of events, Sudu is hospitalised, and Majeed takes upon himself the task of watching over him while he recovers. The movie then charts the course of Sudu’s arrival at Majeed’s home, how the inhabitants at his home nurse Sudu, and his eventual departure.

Sudani carves for itself a spot in the slice-of-life genre; it embraces the vibe of offering something to everyone. The movie is set in a milieu which differs greatly from the manner in which I, or my peers, grew up. Yet, it resonates with me in more ways than one. One of the most intriguing aspects about Sudani is how it manages to evoke empathy for the step-father – a character who, in the movies, is either the subject of extreme indifference (to say the least) or superficial loathing (to say the worst). The longing with which the father (played by the late KTC Abdulla) says ‘Father, father’ to Sudu (to identify himself as Majeed’s father) with the most genuine of toothy grins somehow brought me to tears. It reminded me of how my own father tries to warm up to my friends – the barrier there is not one of language but of the content of their conversation. He makes a genuine effort of striking up conversations with my friends in the ‘language’ they speak – talking to them about their career goals, rent issues, and matters that intrigue them.

The standout performances in Sudani, as is by now well-known, come from Savithri Sreedharan, as Majeed’s mother Jameela, and her friend/neighbour, Beeyumma (played by Sarasa Balussery). These women pull out all the stops to make the amusing guest feel at home, even when they do not know the language Sudu speaks, and certainly do not have an inkling about (or interest in) the sport he plays. The bonhomie of the women reminded me of my own mother who once pulled out all stops when she was willing to order a non-vegetarian meal in our strictly vegetarian household, just to make sure that a certain guest at our home does not return dissatisfied due to the hosts’ culinary preferences.

One of the grudges I heard about the movie was that Sudu did not get a deeper background story, something he possibly deserved. However, I believe that that is what gives a certain anchor to the goings-on that pan out in the movie. Majeed’s family, and to a certain extent Majeed himself, do not have much to go by when they start hosting this rather unfamiliar guest. Yet they seem willing to travel several extra miles for him. Despite Jameela and Beeyumma’s unfamiliarity with Sudu’s ways, or perhaps because of it, they develop a unique but sustainable means of communicating with him and taking care of his imminent needs. Barriers of language or cultural differences do not deter them from doling out all that they have, both material and emotional, for Sudu. If this is not an epitome of the venerable Atithi Devo Bhava, then I do not know what is!

Sudani from Nigeria is also reminiscent of another movie which revolved around a (rather unexpected) guest – Atithi Tum Kab Jaaoge (Hindi, 2010), a movie I found to be breezy and hilarious. Even though the guests in both movies marked an unexpected arrival for the hosts, Atithi is different from Sudani in terms of its tone as well as its setting and premise. The narrative in Atithi fluctuates between the hosts in a certain household awaiting the arrival of the guest, and then ruing the fact that he refuses to leave after he arrives. Atithi can be situated at a considerable distance from Sudani in the genre of movies where the guest is the central point of conflict. This movie begins with unfamiliarity, with the arrival of a guest in a household in a metropolitan city, before moving on to genuine intrigue when the guest arrives and begins to usher in his own way of living, further moving on to annoyance and longing for the guest’s departure. The atithi in Atithi did not speak a language different from his hosts, but belonged to another generation, and harboured a distinctive thought-process. Despite the protagonist couple’s unrelenting efforts to have the guest leave, Atithi had a point to make about how the unceremonious departure of a guest makes no one happy, not even those who excitedly await his/her departure.

In recent times, I remember being palpably touched by Piku (Hindi, 2015), mostly because I felt that the events on screen could very well have unfolded in an average Delhi household, including my own. Sudani is a notch higher for me because it is so different, yet so similar. This movie has a minor Piku moment at the beginning when Majeed, most innocently spells out the advantages of black tea to assist with answering the call of nature. Sudani is like finding a slice in the lives of people who are culturally different and physically distant, yet they mirror us – and vice versa – in the most mundane of habits. It epitomises how the warmth of humanity transcends the barriers of language, as is evident in the interactions between Sudu and the people he encounters at his host’s house. It is to Sudani’s credit that even when sometimes I watch it with subtitles turned off, I get the film. After all, the inherent goodness of human beings is seldom lost in translation.

[The author is a lawyer based in Bengaluru.]