As Mother’s Day rolls by again, store-bought cards or randomly-assembled flower bouquets, are too passé. Instead, this Mother’s day, the gift of quality time might be one of the best gifts on offer. But if you’re wondering what to spend that quality time on, here are five films that you could watch together, and catch up over popcorn and celluloid memories:
The Blind Side
This 2009 American movie is based on the true story of Michael Oher. Oher, who belonged from an impoverished background, was adopted by Sean and Leigh Anne Tuhoy and went on to play for the Baltimore Ravens and the Tennessee Titans. The movie is an endearing narrative on being a mother you don’t necessarily have to be somebody’s biological parent. Sandra Bullock’s stellar performance as Leigh Anne Tuhoy not only won her the Academy Award for Best Actress but also the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role.
Listen… Amaya
Listen… Amaya is a 2013 Hindi movie that brought back the popular jodi of Farooq Shaikh and Deepti Naval. The movie is a coming-of-age story of a single mother who finds love again and her daughter who is not so happy with the development. While Deepti Naval plays the single mother running a book café in Delhi, Farooq Shaikh plays the widowed photographer she befriends, and Swara Bhaskar plays Amaya, the daughter uncomfortable about her mother’s new relationship. This movie and its take on the complexities of a mother-daughter relationship is a good watch this Mother’s Day.
Achuvinte Amma
With two power house actors, Meera Jasmine and Urvashi, in the lead, this Malayalam movie released in 2005 tells the story of an unusual mother-daughter duo. Vanaja (Urvashi) is an LIC agent, as well as a mother, friend, confidant and mentor to her architect daughter Achu (Meera Jasmine). A rift opens up between them over Achu’s relationship with a lawyer, and the film primarily deals with how the mother and daughter get past it.
Kannathil Muthamittal
This acclaimed 2002 Tamil movie starring R Madhavan, Simran, Nandita Das and the child actor P S Keerthana is a heart-warming tale of an adopted daughter in search of her biological parents. In the film, Thiruchelvan (Madhavan) and Indira (Simran) live a happy life with the daughter they adopted from a refugee camp in Rameshwaram, until they tell Amudha (Keerthana) about her adoption. This deeply disturbs Amudha who wants to find her biological parents. So, Amudha and her parents set out to look for her biological parents. The movie is a portrayal of the sweet bond between a daughter and her parents.
Ente Sooryaputhrikku
This 1991 Malayalam movie, also shot in Tamil as Karpoora Mullai, is an edgy revenge saga. In the film, Maya (Amala), the spoiled child of a rich man, is shocked to discover that she is adopted, and seeks out her biological mother, K S Vasundhara Devi (Srividya), a famous singer. When Vasundhara Devi is killed, shortly after Maya wins over her affections, the film becomes a story of a daughter’s revenge for her mother. The film also stars Suresh Gopi. This movie is a touching narrative of a daughter’s journey for acceptance and her anguish when that acceptance is snatched from her.