Underplayed Gems

Swati Mutyam (1986)

Swati Mutyam poster
Original title
స్వాతిముత్యం
Directed by
Kasinathuni Viswanath
Genre
drama film
Country
India
Runtime
2h 40m
Rated
U
Rating
6.9 of 10 from 10 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
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How it feels

A man with a cognitive disability rescues a young widow from her difficult life. Their relationship grows as they help each other face social challenges and find purpose.

romanticpoignantgentleheartfeltslow-burnhopefultendersad

What happens

Swathi Muthyam (transl. White pearl) is a 1986 Indian Telugu-language romantic drama film written and directed by K. Viswanath and produced by Edida Nageswara Rao. The film stars Kamal Haasan and Radhika, while Gollapudi Maruti Rao, J. V. Somayajulu, Nirmalamma, Sarath Babu, and Y. Vijaya play supporting roles. The soundtrack and background score were composed by Ilaiyaraaja. Swathi Muthyam depicts the plight of a young widow who is rescued by a man with a cognitive disability. Swathi Muthyam was a box office success and attained cult status. The film was screened at the Moscow Film Festival, the Asian and African film festival in Tashkent, the 11th IFFI in the inaugural mainstream section. The film received the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Telugu, three Nandi Awards and the Filmfare Award for Best Director – Telugu. The film was selected by India as its entry for the Best Foreign Language Film for the Academy Awards in 1986, but was not nominated. It is currently the only Telugu film to be selected as the Indian Oscar submission for Best International Feature Film. The film was later dubbed into Tamil as Sippikkul Muthu, released on October 2, 1986. Upon its success, Viswanath directed its Hindi version Eeshwar (1989) and in Kannada it was remade as Swathi Muthu (2003). (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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