"Deephan," film by Jacque Audiard, 2015
This is a Diaspora film. This time the displaced ones are Tamils from Sri Lanka. It starts after the 26-year guerilla campaign
in Sri Lanka
has been won by the majority ethnic Sinahalese government in 2009. This occurs after a mass slaughter of the ethnic Tamil minority. Deephan / Sidvahasan is a former Tamil Tiger
whose wife and children have been killed.
His unit is decimated and he's forced into a refugee camp. To get out of the camp, he gets the passport
of a dead man, finds an unattached woman, Yalini, who finds an orphan girl, Illayaal,
and they claim to be a real family. They
are allowed passage to France,
where he becomes the caretaker of a large apartment building in one of the
working-class ring suburbs of Paris,
which are full of immigrants from various countries.
 |
| Deephan - Street Peddler & Maintenance Man & ... |
The apartment blocks are dominated by armed
criminals, mostly drug-dealers. They are
Arab, African, French. But they let
Deephan quietly do his efficient work on the buildings - fixing, cleaning,
maintenance. His alleged daughter
Illayaal goes to a nearby school and works on learning French. His alleged wife Yalini, who has a bad
temper, sits around until he convinces her to work for a paralyzed man in one
of the buildings, Mr. Habib. She is an excellent cook but gets a crush on Mr.
Habib's son, who is a criminal wearing an ankle monitor.
They face all the problems of immigrants in a totally
new place. Language is a main burden,
though Illayaal begins learning French quite well. Deepan has trouble understanding and fitting
in with the cultural customs, like French humor. Illayaal tries to make friends with school
children who are hostile to strangers.
Earning a living is a big hurdle, though the French find Deephan and
then Yalini a job quickly and they pay far more than in Sri Lanka. Deepan & Yalini both try to escape their
past, which can be difficult. The Tamil guerilla
leadership in Paris
want Deephan to continue working for the cause, but he can't face it anymore. They have to lie to the authorities about
their background, as Deephan has to hide being a former Tamil Tiger. And keeping their odd 'family' together -
probably the hardest. In the final case,
putting up with violence that reminds them too much of Sri Lanka, as especially
Yalini goes into panic mode immediately.
The thugs in the buildings have a shootout one day
and Yalini loses it and runs to the train station, abandoning Deephan and
Illayaal to get to London,
where she has a cousin. Deephan forces
her back to the apartment, as he is beginning to feel that they are a real
family. Her leaving might also endanger
their immigrant status. From then on, Deephan puts his former military
skills to use in combating the criminal element, who have not dealt with a
guerilla soldier before - dark and inconspicuous as he is.
The film has an unrealistic but very happy
ending. Part of it is that the
artificially constructed family becomes a real family by living through this
misery. This film puts you in the position of being in immigrant, which is its
main strength. It again reflects the
massive dislocations that primitive capitalist ethnic politics and poverty
bring to society.
Other reviews on Diaspora issues: "Lipstick Jihad."
Red Frog
August 21, 2017
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