Sarada, a little girl, becomes an orphan as her mother passes away owing to an illness. Her stepmother treats her very badly and she does not know what to do.
Acting
Baby Sridevi devastates in her first credited role.
Direction
Pottekkadu weaponizes childhood innocence against viewers.
Director
B K Pottekkadu
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
This was Sridevi's first credited film role at age 7; she had appeared uncredited in Kandan Karunai (1967) as a divine child.
The 'wicked stepmother' trope dominated 1970s Indian cinema, reflecting anxieties about nuclear family breakdown and women's economic vulnerability after widowhood.