When Mahesh, an Indian dancer, and Liis, an Estonian
culture journalist, meet at a folklore festival near Tartu,
it’s love at first sight. To follow Liis, Mahesh becomes an
immigrant in Estonia, trying hard to belong. He delivers
food by bike through snow, wrestles with Estonian vowels,
bends to local customs. Liis, an outsider in her family, is
drawn to tales of women who ran with wolves, sensing
a wild spirit she has long suppressed. Her relationship
with Mahesh is seen by her family as a provocation. On
Christmas, Mahesh, a lifelong vegetarian, is pressured to
eat meat, drink vodka, and perform his best “Estonian.”
Ashamed, he feels himself slipping away. Soon his body
starts to change: black hair spreads, teeth sharpen,
voice drops to a growl, horns press through his skull. He
is becoming a Rākṣasa – a beast of Indian mythology,
cursed as “the other”. At first his strength is admired – he
hauls logs, lifts machines, briefly praised by neighbours
as a “good immigrant”. But admiration shifts to fear when
the transformation goes deeper. Gossip spreads, children
burst into tears, and livelihood slips through his clawed
fingers. Liis shields him from prying eyes; desire pulls
against shame as she faces her buried wildness. They
must transcend fear and judgment to save their love.