Screen Share | K-dramas that provide a break from the chaos
A still from ‘Love Next Door’
Yeo-ryum, the 28-year-old protagonist of the 2022 K-drama summer strike, Decides to take a break from her toxic workplace and her equally toxic boyfriend and takes a bus somewhere. He puts his head out the window, inhales the scent from the canopy of cherry blossom trees, and shouts with joy at the sight of the ocean. “From this moment, I am doing nothing. I am going on strike from life,” he declared.
Have you ever wanted to quit your job and go to the countryside? Sometimes, get relief from worrying about where your career is going, how non-existent your love life is, and relief from the boredom and stress that seems to be all-consuming?
Korean dramas, in the past few years, seem to have perfected this as a genre — healing dramas, which center around the protagonists in need of a break from everything. A few years ago, we were delighted by the journey of Julia Roberts Pray love eat. In her search for a life with more meaning and significance, we traveled with her to Italy, India and Bali, as she nourished her mind, body and soul. Closer to home, yearning for freedom and some fresh air, three women in a family embark on an impromptu road trip in the Tamil web series. Sweet Keram Coffee.
A still from ‘Summer Strike’
In summer strike, However, escape is just a short bus ride away. Yo-ryeum keeps it simple and wholesome — she chooses a small town solely because it has a charming library. What better way to nourish the heart and soul than with books and a potential romantic interest in the form of a sweet librarian?
Currently broadcasting Love’s next doorA tired, visibly exhausted Seok-ryu tells her bright mother, who is angry about quitting her job, that she looks forward to turning off her alarm and falling asleep. To escape the daily chaos and stress at a big tech company overseas, he returns home — to the familiarity of his overbearing parents and a slow, peaceful life. We follow him over the next few days — as he juggles an unemployment schedule, alchemizes the neighborhood, eats comic books, hangs out with his childhood friends, and makes himself delicious green onion pancakes.
Is the decision to take a break from the chaos of reality easy? No, especially when your achievement is unfortunately the only source of pride and joy for your parents. This is the main source of frustration for our female protagonist Doctor Manda whose mother refuses to acknowledge his depression, burnout, and serious need for a break.
A still from ‘Doctor Slump’
Thankfully, these shows move quickly enough, and there’s something truly heartwarming about watching the subsequent healing journeys unfold on screen — often in places far removed from the cities we live in, and days that are completely different from our lives. In leadership Hometown cha cha chaOur hero moves to a quaint seaside village after a huge career failure and while we don’t see much of his journey on screen, we do see the place, its people and its charms that he loves.
The escapist show has been a favorite piece of dual-viewing for the past few years. And while these shows may seem aspirational, and even a little too idealistic for the times we live in, the scent of cherry blossoms and the spray of seawater, even onscreen, is refreshing enough, and makes for a great healing break. episode
From the Hindu Cinema team, a fortnightly column recommending films and shows tied to a mood, theme, or pop cultural event.
