Does a man indulging in infidelity symbolises dominance or patriarchy? Questions the social standing of women

Life throws us challenges. It is how we deal with them that defines who we are. Imagine you are happily married. Kids. A comfortable life. A deep dependence. You start defining yourself in terms of the larger unit- the family and what it means. You love and you develop expectations of love in return. You give- more and more- because you feel like the family is an extension of yourself. You become the larger unit- you become the family. You define yourself as the larger unit- your identity is drowned in its all-encompassing embrace. You begin to live for the larger unit. And then, the cracks appear. He seems a little distant. The phone calls become longer – it’s work- always work. You adjust, you put on a smile. You wait up at the dinner table. You try to make it all right with every fiber of your being. And then there is the undeniable proof- the smoking gun- visual evidence, the hint of a different perfume on his jacket. What will you do?

 

For ages, women have been faced with the problem of infidelity. And we know the choices- the obvious ones at least. Turn a blind eye and pretend it blows over- cry alone. Or you can cry and moan and create enough emotional trauma for everyone involved that he finally must give up. Take refuge with your parent’s family. If you have the financial means, walk out- create a new life for yourself – struggle through the divorce and the social isolation and the custody battles and who gets the house and who gets to keep the china- maybe there is another guy at the end of it all. Maybe.

 

But is there another way? A way that avoids the overt trauma. A way insidious yet powerful, that spares the kids? Where no one knows how the problem got solved- but it does get solved! Pudiya explores this option in a poignant portrayal- the silent passions, the self-analysis, the justifications, and the triumphant ending- but is it a victory if no one knows if there was a battle? Is it a problem if it was solved?

Karan Murarka, Founder, KARA Studios says, “We at KARA Studios and The Short Cuts have always tried to curate interesting content which has some message. When I watched Pudiya, I felt that there is something that needs to be told today in times of infidelity and divorces. The film tries to say that one should not give up on marriages which felt fresh. In our journey of 1 million subscribers, we haven’t seen something like this and immediately I wrote back to them saying we want to collaborate and present the film. What happens, how she saves her marriage is something that you will have to watch on The Short Cuts.”