Sweet Kaaram Coffee: Feminist yet regressive but significant nevertheless

Sweet Kaaram Coffee is not only about three women going on a trip but also about women's freedom to move independently and take decisions for themselves. 

When I returned from my first solo trip, I didn't want to share my experience with my mother and sister-in-law because they are housewives who have never traveled, at least not without men. And I didn't have the heart to tell them what freedom tastes like, especially when they might never receive a spoonful. This is why Prime Video's 'Sweet Kaaram Coffee' is an essential series. It's not only about three women going on a trip but also about women's freedom to move independently and take decisions for themselves. Wanting to escape their miseries, paternal grandmother Sundari (Lakshmi), mother Kaveri (Madhoo), and daughter Niveditha aka Nivi (Santhy Balachandran) elope at midnight for a Goa trip. Nivi aims to be a cricketer; cricket is her life. However, her boyfriend, Karthik sees no potential in women's cricket. "It's not a real career. Who will take care of the house?" he asks. The jolly and liberal Sundari always makes everyone laugh but something aches her. She longs to meet someone we don't know and wants to avoid her son Rajaratnam's (Kavin Jay Babu) constant but restrictive caretaking. 

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The most fascinating character is Kaveri, an unappreciated, meek housewife whose life revolves only around her family. Her husband and kids take her for granted and don't even realise it. The children are busy with their pursuits, the husband is busy working, and she is busy serving them. Like every Indian mother, she holds the family together but is always in the shadows. You know how in conservative households busy men never take women out on vacations? They don't allow women to travel either because they think women are too naive and dependent on them. As a result, women spend their entire lives within the confines of the house. Even if the family goes on vacation, women are busy serving everyone. Kaveri is one of those women. "My home is my world," reads a sticker on the mirror in her room. Her home gives her purpose and happiness but it is also suffocating. 

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Moreover, Kaveri's character is also stirring because of Madhoo's incredible acting. Kaveri's inner turmoil is visible on her face and body language. Veteran actor Lakshmi is no less. She goes from goofy to grief-stricken within seconds. Santhy does a convincing job, but her reclusive demeanour sometimes gets in the way. Another fine actor in the series is Vamsi Krishna (as Vikram), who captures your attention smoothly but knows when to let others take the limelight. The dialogues are admirable too. They are hard-hitting without preachy. The writers have clearly studied what truly ails women's hearts. For instance, when Nivi asks for advice, Kaveri replies, "I don't know if I have advice. But it feels great to be asked for once." When someone calls out "Sundari", Sundari, always referred to as Amma or Paati otherwise, says, "It's been so many years since someone called me by my name." My favorite one is when Vikram asks Kaveri whether she sings professionally, and she replies, "Yes, to pans, pots, mixer…" The characters' pain reflects in their everyday conversations.

Unlike preachy family dramas, if Sweet Kaaram Coffee makes you feel guilty, it is for the right reasons. The series delves into the loneliness that binds women across generations. Its portrayal of how solo travel builds confidence in women is impressively unique. Traveling here is not elitist or glamorous; it is about the freedom to be able to breathe and take your own decisions away from a man's controlling gaze. Female friendships and bonding in the series are authentic yet wholesome. It is rare to see an Indian mother-in-law encouraging her daughter-in-law to restore her sex life.

Hence, it is disheartening when the series eventually gets regressive. It implies that men don't need to work on themselves; women's absence is sufficient to make them realise their faults. It endorses being confined to cages because you belong there and doesn't take any risk with its characters. Nivi and Kaveri's character arcs are ruined in order to make them agreeable. For instance, in one especially problematic scene, when Kaveri dresses up and wears her hair loose, a man approaches her. Rajaratnam's voice echoes in her head, telling her it is her fault. Instead of liberating her from such conditioning, the show ultimately makes her dress up only for her husband. The series also overtly and unnecessarily glorifies traditions and culture. Even though based on women's freedom, the series preaches that marriage is always preferable over staying free and wild. The open ending of the show is especially dissatisfying. It also moves slowly with unnecessarily many slow-motion scenes and songs that are more distracting than aesthetic.

If we keep these flaws aside, Sweet Kaaram Coffee can make for a good one-time watch as well as an important lesson.

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