India, Dec. 13 -- Growing up in the 90s in India in a joint family, away from cell phones, seems like a different kind of reality now. However, the reality of growing up is universal. I did not know which day it was when I was no longer a child. The Kannada feature film Don't Tell Mother, which marks the directorial debut of Anoop Lokkur, takes shape from those spaces, memories and realities of growing up in an Indian family.

Premiering at the International Film Festival of Kerala, this autobiographical coming-of-age drama brims with quiet wisdom and tenderness. The film follows Aakash (Siddharth Swaroop), a 9-year-old boy, and his younger brother, Adi, as they witness both everyday acts of care and violence within their home and the sch...