The water rushing and flowing
The land beneath vanishing
Mind paused for a moment
To process extent movement
Houses and vehicles are sinking
Something so unconvincing
Trees are flowing, people floating
It’s extremely shocking
Tear drops falling from heaven
Surrounding looks like an ocean
Praying for all those who are going through it
Praying for all those who have lost because of it
Hoping that things get better
So that our country can again be filled with laughter
- Varsha Satyanarayana, XI
The Australian series "Stateless" is partly based on real events, is the country's flawed detention centres through the story of four contrasting characters. The series draws inspiration from the life of Cornelia Row, a former flight attendant whose ten-month imprisonment in Australia's detention centre caused massive debate. The show consists of extremely well-written, well-made, and well-performed six episodes. If you are planning to binge on this show then well good luck with that because it is a difficult watch, when I tell you it is one big pill difficult to swallow. It is a show which does not force you to feel a certain way but it allows you to feel that way. This is a spoiler-free review hence it will not be entirely based on the storyline but my general opinion of the show.
The first episode was interesting but not something I anticipated, it was a slow start. It starts out with Sofie, one of the protagonists, who kind of gets herself into a shady situation, it is a self-help group, or is it?!
It progresses to something which you will not be anticipating. Once she flees that situation entirely and finds herself in the detention centre that's when she meets the other characters, we have the character of Ameer, the only non white protagonist, an Afghan refugee who by cruel happenstance loses his family, then we have Cam who has taken a job at the camp where certain things are happening that he is not too sure of, you see him having a conflict within his soul. The show has a lot of main characters, a lot of storylines to keep up with but I don't think it's presented in a way where it would confuse the audience. The show puts Australia’s immigration laws and its detention centres as the core plot.
In my opinion, this series is indefinitely a well-deserving one, the story is slightly slow but other than that there's nothing else I would want to change, it is as raw and real as it can get. All the actors were phenomenal and were top-notch at their game, you get so involved with the characters that you forget you're watching a show that’s how good it is. It might not be for everyone but I would say try giving it a shot. I was learning things throughout the show that I just wasn't aware of and it is heartbreaking at times. Each episode exposes how Australia treats vulnerable people of the society and this series certainly brings that to the forefront.
- Sruti Konda, XI