After 30 years as a sex worker in Toamasina, Madagascar’s second-largest city, Sonia now wants to turn her life around. She decides to start a small tailoring business with which she hopes to support herself and her two teenage children. But she needs start-up capital, and the nighttime economy continues to beckon.
Director Michaël Andrianaly follows Sonia closely and is even granted access to her diaries. The 47-year-old protagonist retains her dignity throughout. She is thoughtful and self-aware, and not one to mince her words. Elsewhere, the film paints a picture of daily life in Madagascar, one of the poorest countries in the world. What kind of future awaits Piso, Sonia’s 17-year-old daughter?
Despite the circumstances, Mangabangabaka does not paint a bleak picture—Sonia is simply too resilient for that. She is surrounded by love: within her family and in her social environment, such as the women’s self-help group she attends. Filmed in warm tones, with a vibrant color palette, this is a clear-eyed and hopeful portrait of a woman who refuses to give up.
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