A Gun & a Ring


A Gun & a Ring is a 2013 Canadian Tamil-language drama film written and directed by Lenin M. Sivam. The film explores the harsh realities faced by different generations of Toronto Sri Lankans. It was nominated for Golden Goblet Award at the 16th Shanghai International Film Festival. It was also officially selected for the 37th Montreal World Film Festival took place 22 August – 2 September 2013 to present under "Focus on World Cinema".

Plot

The film explores the intertwined stories of seemingly ordinary people over a two-week period in Toronto. A young man, Gnanam, who attributes all his failures to his dark past and tries to confront it once and for all; a passionate detective, John, who questions his integrity and passion after making a fateful call; a depressed gay teenager, Aathi, who blames his father and his ideology for the suicidal death of his lover; a compassionate widower, Sornam, who is too preoccupied with the war back in Sri Lanka to protect his daughter from harm's way; a grieving man, Ariyam, who questions his immigrant life in Canada after the tragic death of his only son; and a brave young war victim, Aby, who arrives at a Canadian airport with the hope of a fresh start only to find that she's been abandoned by her fiancé. The film tries to delve deeper into the harsh realities faced by different generations of immigrants as they try to build a life in the adopted land yet unable to let go of their pasts.

Production

According to CBC, with this film, Sivam "subverts the traditional Tamil love story with a tender trans romance". The film was noted for its depiction of the "Sri Lankan civil war’s impact on Toronto-area Tamils" and "ouching upon controversial social issues that affect the Tamil diaspora".

Recognitions