Novel Sing To The Dawn - Animated Synopsis
Chapter 1
Just after waking up to the chilly, crisp morning air, Dawan and her brother creeps out of their humble abode into the young morning atmosphere. Dashing past Dawan, Kwai motions for his sister to follow as he disappears behind a few leafy trees. Dawan chases after him to their usual spot; A hidden river.
Not long after, she joins her brother, who was sitting solemnly on a bridge alone. Inspired by the new day ahead, she leans back on her palms and sings:
“Misty morning
mist is lifting,
melody of trees
slowly sifting
through the gold-green branches.
Dappled morning
sun is flying,
breaths of breezes
rising, dying,
brushing over the earth’s brown skin.
Happy morning
my heart is singing,
arms spread wide
the dawn is bringing
its sunglow to this land, my home.”
Hearing sounds of the other villagers waking, Kwai gets up and urges Dawan to do the same to return home for breakfast before leaving for school together. Dawan however, seemed bemused. Understandingly, Kwai sits back down beside her. He asks if his sister is nervous for their teacher’s announcement for the government scholarship’s winner later.
After a while, she asks whether Kwai would go if he wins the scholarship.
Kwai jokingly asks if anyone could turn down free education. But despite his ease, Dawan felt his excitement. After all, Kwai was expected to win that scholarship.
Kwai continues to talk about his dreams to visit the city’s huge markets and stunning divine temples.
Dawan laughs and reminds him to not dismay their teacher’s noble hopes for Kwai’s future.
Changing his verbal stance, Kwai next talks about coming back, after his studies at the city schools, to help teach his father to raise new crops, introduce better fertilisers, start a village hospital and even advise other villagers on how to avoid being cheated by the tax collector, before being interrupted by Dawan, at the mention of the tax collector. They both continued to discuss before agreeing that that the taxes imposed onto their father are unjustified. Dawan questions the Landlord’s right to take away their family’s rice despite not toiling for it.
Kwai argues that Dawan too stands a chance at winning the scholarship as she works harder than him and consistently excels in tests. With her fists clenched tight, she coldly replies, “I’m a girl, Kwai”.
Chapter 2
With silent anticipation, the entire class waits for the teacher to announce for the chosen one. Nonetheless, the teacher instead begins talking about the heavy rice stacks beneath each student’s home. He continues to prompt them to question the injustice of their society’s system; the reason to why they must pay their landlords high rentals. One of the student’s answers that their farm lands are owned by the landlord. Dawan then queries her teacher of their landlord’s right to own their land. He then acknowledged her by writing her question on the board and listing three words beneath: “Labour,” Need,” and “Inheritance,”
However, an ensuing discussion about the landlord’s ownership of their land, despite his insufficient labour under the blazing sun, abundant family wealth and lineage’s questionable inheritance of the land, soon left all three of the words crossed out. This then propels the next question by Kwai about the fairness of their village’s current situation.
A majority of the class conceded that there should be change. Some suggest a coup before dividing and sharing the land equally. But then, the areas divided would not be proportionate to every families’ means to work on it.
Kwai suggests for all the buffalos and tools be put in the village center for everyone in need, to freely use them. With that, everyone will be able to take turns on the usage of that equipment and that each family’s manpower would no longer be an issue as the animals and tools can be productively used.
The discussion abruptly stops at the arrival of the headmaster. Monotonously, the teacher switches to a geography lesson. After the headmaster left, the teacher then proceeds to announcing the results of the government scholarship. Dawan has won the scholarship!
Chapter 3
Kwai, shocked and disbelieving, retreats silently off on his own. Feeling sorry for Kwai, Dawan too left for home, thinking that he would be there. However, he wasn’t. Instead, she finds her father grumpier, as their sacks of rice have just been hauled away by the tax collectors. When Dawan delivers the good news of her achievement, her father only snaps and accuses her of robbing her brother’s chance, before throwing a temper and stalking off. Only Dawan’s grandmother cared to congratulate her. Next, her grandmother comes up with a plan to get Noi, Dawan’s cousin to help persuade and change her father’s mind. Dawan’s mother ends up taking her there.
Chapter 4
Noi and her husband, Ghan believes that the city is a barbarous place for a young girl like Dawan to be alone in. Amidst their discussions, an army officer creeps up and steals Ghan away for a ‘talk’ about his pay to avoid being enlisted into the army. Noi and Ghan are struggling to satisfy the officer’s high demands and will be forced deeper into debt. Dawan and her mother finds out that Noi had lied to them about the city’s wonders. Noi later chides Dawan’s childishness and insists for her to give up pursuing change at the city and instead accept and cope with life as it is. Dawan however feels that she will never be able to do so. Alternatively, she craves to grasp a better understanding of how the present system of her society operates to help build a far superior one. Noi refuses to help persuade Dawan’s father out of fear that harm might come upon her cousin, Dawan, if she goes to the city. That however does not shake Dawan’s resolution as she firmly resolves to go see and judge the city for herself. Dawan and her mother leaves Noi and her family soon after.
Chapter 5
It was twilight by the time Dawan and her mother were about to reach home. Noticing and recognising a small and lithe figure darting behind them, she stops to wait for Kwai. Their mother on the other hand chose to proceed home to prepare dinner.
Kwai was unhappy with the fact that Dawan had sought help from Noi to change their father’s mind. He later reveals that he still has a chance of claiming the scholarship for himself for he had in fact achieved second place, right behind Dawan. He could only go if, his sister rejects the scholarship offer to make way for him.
Despite that, Dawan remains adamant with her decision to claim the scholarship that allows her access to an education that her father refuses to even give her, unlike Kwai, whom their father will agree to send off with unconditional support. Dawan tries to persuade Kwai to win the next scholarship offer instead. Kwai however interjects that winning the scholarship is just another responsibility that Dawan would be incapable of shouldering. He further elaborates that Dawan could never fight, voice out her opinions loudly or lead her people in times of crisis, due to the simple fact that she is just a mere girl. Deep anger and frustration aroused in the depths of Dawan’s heart as she bitterly challenges Kwai’s statement. At that moment, a rift is cast in their relationship.
Softening, Kwai wonders aloud; if it was possible for each of them to take turns if they could both go; by taking turns. Calming down, Dawan jokes at the absurdity of the idea. At that instant, any hostility between them melted away.
As they neared home, Kwai agrees to not tell their father about his results and asked for more time to reconsider his decision. No promises are made about his future actions however.
Chapter 6
The air was thick with heavy silence during dinner. To soften father’s mood, mother had added some fishballs to the vegetable soup. Her efforts however ends in vain when she is immediately silenced by her husband, after bringing up the topic of her daughter’s education.
After dinner, Dawan rallies her courage to question her father of his reluctance to let her to claim her entitlement to the scholarship. Father retorts by demanding to know of Dawan’s reason to continue studying, as he believes that further education will only be wasted on a daughter. In her state of dejection, Dawan catches a small smile from Kwai.
Refusing to meet her pleading gaze, he abruptly asks if their father would approve of him going, if he had won the scholarship.
Father wistfully replies that Kwai’s case would be different. He believes that educating his son would be more reasonable; as sons are more obliged to help their fathers whilst the daughters tend to their households. But then reality hits, and father could only sigh in disappointment with Kwai. Silently, Kwai leaves the house.
Immediately after finishing up with the dishes, Dawan sprints off to look for Kwai. Under the warm velvet sky, she starts to question her right to claim the scholarship for herself, and whether it’s right to stand in her brother’s way. She ponders about her expected fate; to continue waiting on her future family’s needs and be forever tied down to her family duties. What good would learning do for her?
“Nothing,” the stars whispered coldly.
“Everything!” their reflections accosted.
Dawan starts wondering to whom she can turn to for help; now that her own flesh and blood has turned against her.
Under the surreal moonlight, she hears a soft splash. If there’s anyone her father deeply respects, it is the old monk of the village temple. Dawan’s dreams and hopes of studying at the city rekindles.
Chapter 7
Before visiting the temple, Dawan makes a detour to the marketplace to buy a tribute for the old monk; a lotus bud. There, she meets a young peddler named Bao, who is surrounded by sparrows trapped in dainty wooden cages and a white pail full of white lotus buds. Bao insists that Dawan take the lotus bud for free despite her willingness to pay. Bao then argues that she can’t sell something that’s not of her creation. After all, it was the mud that supported the roots, water that flowed life into it and the sun that shined beauty onto it.
Dawan instantly took a liking to Bao’s defiance and enthusiasm. She decides to confide her reason of acquiring the lotus bud. Bao admires Dawan’s resolution to continue her education and Dawan feeds her growing interest with the storybooks, sums and ideas that she learnt at school. Bao grumbles that her brother, Vichai, Dawan’s classmate, doesn’t think so highly of school as Dawan does.
Soon, Bao discovers that Dawan had won the scholarship and compliments her intellect and brilliance at winning the scholarship. Dawan replies that their differences are caused by the contrast of chances presented to them. She explains that it was Kwai who had helped persuade their father into letting her study years ago. Bao wishes that her brother would do the same for her. She further describes him as being self conceited to the extend of fighting with her to get what he wants. Dawan snorts and tells Bao that Kwai had placed second in the exam and is most likely to tell their father. Dawan would then be forced to stand down for her brother. Hence, Dawan’s reason to visit the head abbot.
Bao warns Dawan about the monks’ abnegation and reluctance to take sides. After thanking Bao, Dawan departs for the temple with a promise to return and tell Bao about the outcome of her meeting with the monk later.
Chapter 8
Dawan waits in an empty courtyard for the head abbot to finish his duties The silent desolation of the courtyard seems to echo an ending to another phase of a life. She sighs softly.
The head monk emerges from behind her. After a small talk, he begins to recognise her as the girl who had won the scholarship. He is even aware of Kwai’s unfortunate situation of coming in as second. Curiously, he asks Dawan about her troubles of flying off freely to the city despite her cage’s door being already open. Reluctantly, she explains her situation. The monk becomes confused and asks what Dawan wants him to do. Dawan replies patiently that she needs his help to persuade her father in letting her claim the scholarship. The puzzled monk then asks about Dawan’s reason to leave for the city to further her studies when everything she needs is already in the temple.
The monk then explains that everything will inevitably fade away into nothingness and urges Dawan to forget about her materialistic ideals of life to be able to achieve higher truths of spiritual understanding. He gently advises Dawan to be wiser and accept things as they are, for a calmer and less painful life. Indignantly, Dawan replies that she doesn’t need to be wise to understand that its only natural for people in pain, who live outside this sanctuary, to struggle for a change. Sternly, the monk warns her that her efforts would be futile as they would never last.
Frustrated, Dawan cries out that even a slight improvement to their lives now would still be worthwhile her efforts. Even if thousands have tried and failed before her. Softly, the monk tells Dawan that he can’t help her achieve ideals that he doesn’t believe in. He then asks what can a ordinary school girl like her hope to accomplish?
Hurt and angry, Dawan asks if he would help, if it was her brother instead of her, who is struggling under the same harsh circumstances. The monk answers that her brother wouldn’t face the same problems, if he had won first. Without letting the monk finish, Dawan swivels around with her eyes glistening with tears and runs out from the temple’s courtyards. Upon reaching the gates, she turn around to shoot one last seething glare, before leaving the temple.
Chapter 9
Once outside, Dawan’s raucous fury dissipates, leaving behind only a silent hollowness. She wonders if there’s any point in hoping and fighting if all this is to end in vain. Defeatedly, she ponders if she should just graciously step down for her brother, once and for all.
Seeing her friend crushed, Bao manÅ“uvres past the scattered baskets of fruit till she reached her. After leading her friend back to her flower stall, she soothingly tells her to brush the monk’s words aside. Glumly, Dawan explains the hopelessness for the situation.
Snorting, Bao suggests for Dawan to believe in her own capabilities of helping herself. Instantly, a flame rekindles inside of Dawan. Bao insists that Dawan should never yield her chance to her brother. Furthermore, she must stand steadfast by her principles in order to become her brother’s equal.
She passes Dawan a caged sparrow that she has been quietly eyeing for some time before urging her to open it’s door. Carefully, Dawan did so.
For a while, the small sparrow inside studied the cage’s door. Bao then softly nudges the bird. Finally aware that it is truly free, with a single-minded grace, it soars off to the endless cerulean sky. Only then, did Dawan understood Bao’s intentions.
Suddenly, she felt her friend stiffen as a dark physique stalks towards them. Urgently, Bao warns Dawan to immediately leave as her brother would be enraged at the fact that she couldn’t pay for the bird. Reluctantly, she darts away before hiding behind a stall hung heavy with baskets.
Meanwhile, Vichai interrogates his sister’s actions of freeing the sparrows he had caught, without charge. He starts shouting menacingly at her. Defiantly, Bao threatens to one day free the whole flock. Violently, he slaps Bao, who unflinchingly begins to taunt him by opening as many cage-doors as she could. However, she could only savour a split-second of triumph before receiving a harsh blow to her shoulder. Yet, she continued wrenching the cage doors open; like her very life depended on it.
Just then, Kwai dashes forward, before grappling to restrain Vichai. Indifferent to the scuffle before her, sits Bao; caressing a lifeless sparrow. She tries to put its awkward joints back together as she whispers remorsefully that she had murdered it. Beaten, Vichai tramps off.
An avalanche of tears streaked Bao’s face as she accused Kwai of falsely helping her after trying to rob his sister’s chance at the scholarship. Furious at Bao’s remarks and just like Vichai before, raises his fists; poised to strike. Hurriedly, Dawan jumps up and grabs his arms while yelling at him to not hit Bao. In the spur of the moment, Kwai callously pushes his sister aside and causes her to lose balance before falling onto the pile of broken birdcages. A sharp splinter slices through her ankle. Yet, she could only sit in daze as rivulets of crimson trickled from her wound, splashing softly into a mud-puddle by her feet.
“Liar,” Dawan softly chants. She then asks him about the times he talked about defending the weak and poor before turning back and wanting to take her only chance away. The gathering crowd only listened hungrily.
It was Noi who finally pushed through the crowd to reach her cousin. Dawan whinges as Noi started cleaning her wound. The crowd soon dismissed. Gently Noi explains to Dawan that this would be the outcome if she tried fighting or getting in the way of men. Faintly but urgently, Dawan replies that Noi wouldn’t understand that Kwai would never hurt her. It starts drizzling as the faint growls of the sky crescendoed. Limping, Dawan leaves with Bao’s umbrella after being ordered by Noi to hurry home.
Chapter 10
Despite the vehement downpour, Dawan dreaded the idea of returning home to face the sharp interrogations of her parents about her cut ankle. She also felt a pulsing necessity to sit alone by the calmness of the river. However, she is surprised to see Kwai already sitting on the old bridge. At first, she wanted to avoid confronting him to prevent the pain from aggravating. However, her sisterly sentiments took over as she hobbled over to check on him.
He was disturbed by how easily his principles had soured and confesses that he feels conflicted that the only way to continue furthering his studies to help other people, is by robbing his own sister’s chance to study. Stubbornly, he refuses to follow Dawan out of the rain to weigh his thoughts out. Dawan vaguely seemed to understand her brother’s wish to remain amidst a thunderstorm while he struggles to make a grim choice. Sighing, she thrusts the umbrella into Kwai’s hands before proceeding home without one.
Touched by his sister’s struggles to shelter him from the raging monsoon despite her pain, he scrambled up. His verdict has been made. Holding the umbrella high above his head, he races after his sister to share the umbrella with her for the rest of their way home.
Chapter 11
Slowing down as he reached his shocked sister, he explains that only a fool would remain out in a storm to think. As they huddled close together to protect themselves from the slashing rain, suddenly, Dawan felt Kwai stiffening by her side. It was their father, leading the buffalo home. They both felt instantly uneasy at the sight of their father seeming furious at the fact that Kwai had completely forgotten about his responsibility to bring the buffalo out from the storm. With Kwai groaning softly, both of them slowly approached their father.
Shouting over the loud howls of the wind, their father demanded to know Kwai’s reason for hiding the truth about his results. At the sight of their father’s raised palm, the siblings cowered under the umbrella, hoping for its protection. However, the blow only landed on the backside of the buffalo. Startled, the buffalo plodded off into the forest. Despite being ordered to go after it, Kwai defiantly held his stance while gripping the umbrella handle tightly. Turning away from his children, the lean pheasant strode off after the buffalo himself; with legs savagely kicking through the puddles.
Together, the siblings then plodded their way back home. Upon reaching, the rain had subsided. Their grandmother, with eyes more curious than disapproving, asks about their actions that had caused their father’s fierce mood. Just then, they heard a loud gruff voice bellowing for them. It is their father.
Kwai manages to calmed his father down. Soon, Dawan realizes that her father is truly baffled at her ability to place in as first in the village during the examinations. Their father then states that, though he doesn’t have the right to stop Dawan from going, he certainly has the power to do so.
For the first time since entering the room, Dawan finally stands up to her father to not abuse his power. Their father bellowed and shouted at her to stay out of the discussion. Quivering, yet filled with conviction, Dawan challenges of her reason to stay out of it when it concerns her too.
Quietly, Kwai declares that if Dawan is not permitted to go, then neither would he go. Instead, he will choose to pass the scholarship to their classmate; an outsider of the family. Appalled, their father asks Kwai if he was sure of his statement. Kwai defiantly answers that he does not want his sister to sacrifice her opportunity for him.
Directing his next question at Dawan, their father asks for her perspective on this. Looking squarely in her father’s eyes, she asks for her father to give equal treatment towards her as he gives to Kwai. Yet, their father continues to demand why she should be given this chance. To him, Dawan is only a powerless girl who can achieve nothing, even with higher education.
“Father stop it!” Dawan screamed above the noise of her father’s shouts.
Shakily, she continues that she would be incapable of achieving anything if she is never given the chance to begin with. Urgently with sincerity, she asks that her father shares her dreams, just like how he shares his son’s. She begs for him to set her free.
Her father finally asks if she could accomplish greater things for them all, the village, for the country, or even the world. Heart pounding against her chest, Dawan answers that she could certainly try. With that, her father stood up and despite being a little bit, smiled reluctantly at her, giving her, his final blessing.
Happily, Dawan smiled widely as she turned to hug her brother. Only then, did she realise a small hint of sadness in his eyes. Suddenly, the exhilaration she felt earlier started to choke in her throat. But, she could find nothing to say to him. Sadly, she questions to herself, the reason of ones joy based on another’s sorrow. Why can’t they both advance together? She could only silently watch has Kwai hid his tears.
Chapter 12
Once again, a new dawn has arrived. Despite there being a special glow to this morning, a faint hint of sadness lingered in the air. Quietly, so that she doesn’t wake the others, she glances over at Kwai’s bedding. He was gone. Just like he had been for the past few days.
Darting through the rutted path to the river, Dawan spots fresh footprints on the muddy path before her. Not daring to hope, she hurried the rest of the way. Sure enough, she spots Kwai, sullenly throwing pebbles into the river. He was cursing the stones, saying that they always will sink, no matter how you throw them.
Dawan gently thanks him for allowing her this chance to claim the scholarship. Kwai, throws another pebble before asking for her reason to leave. Though his voice was hostile, Dawan knew that it was a plea. Again, he asks of it would be worth it when she’d end up like their mother. Angrily Dawan retorts that it would be the same if he goes. Why should Kwai go if he were to remain a pheasant like their father?
Softly she explains that she is equally confused and nervous and asks for Kwai to happy for her, now that she can change the injustice of their society. Sadly, Kwai explains that things will never be the same again. Dawan would be gone. Giving up on the stones, he turns to the lotus bud and started restlessly plucking off its petals. Horrified, Dawan begs him to stop. Sorrowfully, she confides that she’ll miss the times they’ve spent together and begs for him to continue singing her morning song for her because, she will never sing it anywhere else.
Her brother, with face streaked with tears, disappears off into the vast paddy fields. Dawan wonders how will she be able to cope without the company of her close ones. Out of kinship for the torn lotus bud, she picks up the fallen petals and sprinkles them onto the water’s surface. Dawan wishes that Kwai wouldn’t be sad and see that these petals won’t sink.
Chapter 13
Many people had gathered in front of Dawan’s house that morning to see her off. Cringing at the sudden large number of visitors, Dawan shrinks into the shadows.
Gently, her grandmother coaxes her to calm down and take her time before meeting the crowd. Tossing the torn lotus bud aside, she hurriedly begins to dress. A bubbling set of nervousness rose to her throat at the rumbling sound of the bus. Just then, the old lady calls her over and gives her a motivational speech; to face the world with clear boldness. Dawan sobbed, and as she did so, begged her grandmother to let her cry this once, before she never cries again. Patiently, the older woman stood by her side.
After a while. she carefully picked up the abandoned lotus bud before placing it into a glass jar, filled with fresh rain water, and handing it over to Dawan. Grandmother explains to Dawan that she, Dawan, is similar to the lotus bud; small on the outside. But given the right amount of water and sunshine, it will slowly unfold just like Dawan would.
Grandmother then reminds her that without change, she could never blossom and asks that she thinks of this as a another transition in life. With that she lightly pushes Dawan out to embark on her next journey. On the way to the bus, Dawan bumps into her father who tells her that Kwai is away, sitting as calmly as a water buffalo on the old bridge. Dejected, she proceeds to board the bus. The bus then leaves.
As the river now comes into view, all of a sudden, Dawan hears a familiar tune, carried by the gentle breeze. Kwai was there, standing on the old bridge, with arms outstretched; as if meant to embrace. Laughing Dawan joins him in the song. Dawan leaned out and watched as her brother’s waving figure disappeared off into the distance.
Leaning back, she picked up the glass jar and softly sang her last verse. Just then, a ray of sunshine pierced and cradled the lotus. The first few petals have just begun to unfold.
