Sister Midnight - Dracula or Social Oppression

 Sister Midnight was directed and written Karan Kandhari, is a black comedy centred around a woman named Uma, starring Radhika Apte, who is dragged into an unhappy arranged marriage with Gopal, starring Ashok Pathak. Uma finds her own adventurous ways to keep herself alive, wandering in the streets at night in Mumbai. Uma experiences something like no one.

The movie is a black comedy for the weirdos; it has its own comical timings, and of course, Apte, I didn't know she was a better comedian than most of the stand-up comedians. Apte's performance was solidifying and an attempt to question the societal pressures faced by women in India;  with her unfiltered personality and explorations, it was funny, weird, and suspenseful. I had no idea where the movie was going till the end, but it's cool, stop motion animation had me turned on, with a goat corpse, a heat on, Mumbai city lights, and portraying female friendships.

Sister Midnight was nonchalant and straightforward. It embraces its multi-layered storyline with comedy, normal conversations, Mumbai nighttime, and unemployment. Uma and Gopal were put on a pedestal with their awkward marriage and even their characters being unfiltered, Gopal extending his handshake to Uma is not impressed, they are considered as village idiots by their neighbours. The two social misfits had a hard time surrounding themselves with each other, with Uma just silently sitting on the floor outside smoking a joint, her head surrounded with mystery and confusion. Not knowing how to cook, she befriends and seeks help from her no-nonsense neighbour Chaya Kadam, Sheetal. Sheetal taught Uma how to cook. Uma's behaviors and actions make it obvious that she has no interest in cooking or any household chores. Bored in her house, Uma wants employment; her husband works in printing, yet is almost unemployed. Uma gets a job in a company for sweeping floors, which is one of the funniest lines of the film. When the manager she will be able to do her work or clean the floors properly, Uma answers Mei Safai Ki Devi Hu. The film has some of the funniest punch lines, is gold, slanky and humours.

UMA- A SWEARY PROTAGANIST

Uma swears a lot, her glorious no taking shit personality makes her more hilarious, seeking adventure and employment beyond domesticity, social oppression, and Gopal's indifference to her dramatically awkward sexual advances. Uma begins wandering at night, and here she finds company with a group of trans sex workers, and they offer her a sense of community in the city. 

The deadpan structure of the film, with no BGM, uncomfortable silences, seems like an antagonist, and creates its own narratives. 

UMA turns into a vampire?

Bitten by a fly at a wedding ceremony, Uma becomes bloodthirsty; she finds herself in a loophole of boredom, female social pressures, loser husband. The dramatic cinematography has a wealthy nature and goes perfectly with the film's structure. Uma feels power in herself; the film draws literal blood, a female Dracula. Uma's sudden animal urges create confusion for the viewers and the narrative itself. Uma feels her body is weak, also starts having hearing problems seeks a doctor; however, one day, after coming back from work, Uma ate a goat's blood and is shocked by her own actions. Uma is in denial and runs towards her house. After Uma finds her in an abandoned forest catching birds, squirrels finds herself more comfortable in the nocturnal realm. Her blood thirst increases as she becomes a Feminine-Monster wandering at night searching for animal blood. Uma is healthy after giving the most authentic cravings.

Maintain her count of how many animals she killed and kept their corpses in a box. Uma goes crazy when she starts seeing all the animals, birds, ghosts, flying, and running towards her.

The film is open-ended, extremely unhinged, and has literal Dracula covering herself with blankets and sunglasses at daytime and running wild at night. As Uma Apte plays a deeply unpredictable role. Uma's evolution into a bloodthirsty creature is not one of seduction and mystique, as such journeys are often shown on-screen. Instead, it's a frankly hilarious path of survival, practicality, and personal curiosity.