And for a culture that thrives on ambiguity, on the unspoken, on the tragedy of ordinary life—that was the most perfect film of all.
Streaming has allowed "parallel cinema" to become "mainstream." Films like Joji (an adaptation of Macbeth set in a Keralite rubber plantation) and Nayattu (a chase thriller about three police officers on the run) found global audiences not because of stars, but because of their sharp cultural specificity. And for a culture that thrives on ambiguity,