‘Don’t Tell Mother’: Quiet struggles of childhood

Among the Indian films going to the prestigious 30th Busan International Film Festival this year is Anoop Lokkur’s debut Kannada feature ‘Don’t Tell Mother’. The film is having its world premiere in the ‘Windows To Asian Cinema’ section, which offers a peek into various styles and visions within Asian cinema.

Set in the Bangalore of 1990s, ‘Don’t Tell Mother’ is a tender coming-of-age drama that follows Aakash, a 9-year-old boy navigating the quiet struggles of childhood. At school, he endures the anger of a frustrated mathematics teacher — pain he keeps hidden from his mother, Amma. At home, Amma wrestles with the suffocating demands of a patriarchal world that leaves little space for her own identity. As tensions rise, Aakash finds solace in his innocent younger brother, Adi. But when tragedy strikes, the fragile bonds between them are tested in unexpected ways, forcing Aakash to confront the weight of grief, guilt, and an emerging empathy for the mother he once feared.

A deeply human story about the emotional inheritance passed from grown-ups to children, it captures the confusion of childhood, the quiet heartbreaks of motherhood, and the moments of grace that flicker between pain and understanding. Set in a world where love often arrives hand-in-hand with hurt, the film examines how children inherit not just affection but anger, fear, and silence. The film peels back the layers of family to reveal the wounds we excuse, the patterns we repeat, and the resilience it takes to break free.

Excited about the Busan premiere, Anoop, who is based in Melbourne but is originally from Bangalore, says, “This is the most personal thing I’ve ever made. It comes from a vulnerable place, memories of my childhood and the love I have for my mother. Writing it helped me understand her struggles in a way I hadn’t before. We were such a small team, but everyone, the cast and the crew, gave their all to bring this story to life. To now have our world premiere at Busan feels almost unreal. I’m so grateful to the programmers for believing in our film, and I hope audiences connect with it.”

The Indo-Australian film has been shot by Mathew Jenkins, edited by Pavan Bhat, and produced by Anoop Lokkur, Mathew Jenkins and Mikalya Henke under Papunu Films and East Reel Films with Nishil Sheth and Karan Kadam as co-producers.

The festival will be held from September 17-26.