Sui Yin and her brothers were born and brought up in a Malay village. Their close interaction with the Malay community leads to their embracing Islam and the brothers taking Malay brides. But their mother cannot accept their change. “Why do Chinese people want to be Malays?” she questions again and again. Is faith the issue here? Why does Sui Yin’s mother cry every Lunar New Year? A Mother’s Tears is the tale of a mother who wonders if she has lost the love of her children.