Films directed by women are often made to bear an unfair cross. We expect these films to be “sensitive” and to tackle subjects that male filmmakers cannot (or will not) – as if only women can be empathetic enough, and sympathetic enough to hot-button issues, while men go about making movies whose only purpose is making their wallets fatter. But Malini 22 Palayamkottai, directed by Sripriya, is truly a film that will give most men pause – at least, they’re going to wince and cross their legs upon listening to the story of the Malayalam original, 22 Female Kottayam (directed by a very brave man named Aashiq Abu).
And at least one development hints at a feminine sensibility, especially for Tamil cinema – and that’s the subplot (a few scenes, really) revolving around a nurse named Jency (Anjali). She lives with two colleagues (Malini, played by Nitya Menen and Sarala, played by Kovai Sarala) in a mansion with a pool, and at first we wonder how they can afford the rent – and then we get the scene where the camera slowly begins to pull back from Jency’s face, reflected in a mirror, and we slowly see that we’re in a bedroom, and that there’s a man on the bed, and that he’s a considerably older man, and that he’s getting a call, and that the call is from his wife. Any minute, we expect Jency to break into a mistressy sulk, but when the man says he has to leave she just picks up his wallet and extracts a few thousands. Her housemates don’t judge her – where another film would have labelled Jency a whore, Sarala simply acknowlegdes the fact that Jency has a large family to feed. (The other, not inconsiderable, fact that without Jency they wouldn’t be living in this palace is also not lost on her.)
But elsewhere, Sripriya sculpts her story with a cudgel borrowed from male hacks. Malini’s heavyset younger sister (Vidyulekha) is mocked as a “gundachi” and Sarala – Kovai Sarala plays her scenes at an excruciating pitch; it’s never a good sign when a character vanishes from the narrative, but in this case, I was relieved to see the last of her – is ridiculed as a woman of a certain age who turns to mush at the mere sight of younger men. Do female filmmakers need to show extra sensitivity to female charcters? Certainly not. In a different movie (and if we were in a politically incorrect mood), we might even laugh at these scenarios. But how can we be expected to take this story about an exploited woman (Malini) seriously if the women around her are being exploited in other ways, for the sake of the film’s commercial viability? Feminism and fat jokes – it’s not an easy mix.
An uneasier mix is found in the film’s inabilty to decide if it’s a pulpy story of revenge or some sort of call to arms. When Malini’s dreams of migrating to Canada are smashed by the actions of men – she ends up in jail; the film’s first shot shows her being cuffed and led away by cops – and when she gets out and plots grisly revenge, we are reminded of pulp cinema (I Spit On Your Grave, Ek Hasina Thi) as well as pulp fiction (Sidney Sheldon’s If Tomorrow Comes). In this universe, Malini’s decision to dole out justice in black (and to the accompaniment of a twangy guitar score derived from a Western) – she is an avenging angel, after all, a harbinger of death – makes sense. We aren’t in the real world but in a stylised movie-world. But reality keeps creeping in, with references to the rape of a 5-year-old in Delhi and with speeches about how human-rights committees help criminals get away with lesser punishments than they deserve. Is the film lurid trash or is it a feminist empowerment saga?
The director may claim it’s both, but you cannot have it both ways. A bigger problem is that we never feel anything for Malini – she’s more a dimbulb construct than a character. During the course of a dull courtship, Varun (Krish Sathar) takes her to a nightclub and forces her to down drinks. Anyone can see what’s coming from miles away, and the fact that she chooses to move in with this creep doesn’t ring true. Actually, there’s not one convincing moment in the movie. The performances are broad, the staging is most basic, and too much time is spent on Malini’s dreary backstory (and not enough on the way she gets even with her tormentors). The minor victory of the film is that we get to hear the F-word, in all its un-beeped-out glory. That sound you hear is Tamil Nadu’s thaikulam turning in its grave.
An edited version of this piece can be found here.
Copyright ©2014 The Hindu. This article may not be reproduced in its entirety without permission. A link to this URL, instead, would be appreciated.
Rajesh
January 25, 2014
It was really stupid of Tamil cinema to remake this from the Malayalam movie, which was a mix of lots of other movies, and pretended to be an original, and feminist and what not. It was a pretentious stupid movie, which became a hit in Malayalam, unfortunately, I dont know why.
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Rajesh
January 25, 2014
Forgot to add this. I am told that Tamil cinema is also remaking another movie from the same director, Ashiq Abu, his debut one in which he tried to make a ‘Hollywood style romantic comedy’, under the pretention of a food movie. I feel sorry that Tamil cinema – who actually are making better off beat movies than any other industry in India – has to do this.
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Vanya
January 26, 2014
I haven’t seen the Tamil version, but thought the Malayalam original was an interesting premise. Unfortunately, the actress who played the protagonist brought nothing to the table, and wasn’t the least bit credible in the role. Fahadh Faasil, on the other hand, was just right as the two-faced boyfriend.
Btw, I don’t remember the mallu version being as preachy as this one sounds. I thought it was being fairly non-judgmental, considering her willingness to take assistance from one morally questionable man (although he does treat women with respect) to avenge herself on another.
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brangan
January 26, 2014
Rajesh: Yeah, I wasn’t very impressed by the Malayalam film either, though I was surprised by the casual appraisal of Fahadh Faasil’s butt by the heroine 🙂 This would never happen in Tamil cinema, where the heroine is almost always a pillar of virginal virtue 🙂
Vanya: The problem is always when a film stops being about its characters, its situations and starts to address the nation/world at large. Then we get the sense of overt message-mongering. So yes, the original was definitely better — though, as I said in the comment above, I wasn’t all that impressed by it.
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Suganth
January 26, 2014
Baradwaj: ” This would never happen in Tamil cinema”
— What? Did you forget Irandaam Ulagam? 🙂
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NASQKathir
January 26, 2014
Sorry.. you give any reason, It is a myth, that every woman in India is living at their worst. India is still conservative, and cannot be so liberal as western in near future. Media will hype like these girls are going daily night parties and dancing and boozing. Certainly 0.001% of girls are like this. I was one among 8 members (May be from media) watched this film in the theater. Not convincing at all. What punishment can be given to a female of the same nature? any guess.. come on. come on..
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Rajesh
January 27, 2014
@brangan
The moment you mention above is a typical example of the modern generation Malayalam movie makers/writers ‘pretending’ themselves to be modern and more open minded. In fact 90% of their characters (except in the brilliant – Annayum Rasoolum / 101 chodyangal) always behave like the NRI’s or white foreigners walked out of a Hollywood movie, to make themselves appear modern. That indegenous factor that we see in off beat Tamil movies are really missing in Malayalam. In this same movie 22FK, you can see the characters trying to be modern and all, talking about male butt and all, but the heroine talks about her first sexual relationship as a MISTAKE, the man who cheated her in the name of marriage. She is still reluctant to comment about her first sexual experience without the pretext of being cheated.
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Jai
January 29, 2014
@ Rajesh
I get what you are saying about characters ‘pretending’ to be modern but still hewing back to an earlier mindset. However, the example you quote to illustrate this, IMHO, is a bit misplaced. Can a modern woman *not* feel, that her first sexual experience should be with a person she was assured of a long term future with?
I completely agree that branding someone a s***/ degenerate because they had premarital sex, is practically antediluvian. But why go the other extreme? Just because someone feels they got lured into a relationship by the promise of marriage, doesn’t make them ‘not modern’. And in the movie 22 F K, Fahadh’s character *does* lie to and cheat Reema’s character, does he not?
Cheers..
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MANK
January 29, 2014
@Rajesh
Bang on about the new generation malayalam movies man. What started out as a breath of fresh air in the cacophony of loud superstar films has quickly turned into self parody and pretentiousness. True there were some good films coming out in them like you mentioned, but majority of them are absolutely ridiculous. Wearing Bermudas and speaking in broken english and supposedly being open about sexual relationships, openly talking about sexual organs are considered to be the reason for progress in these films..The good thing is that , it seems to have slowed down for a while and in recent times , some good directors esp. Jithu joseph from the mainstream has reasserted themselves with quality products.The good thing to come out of this new generation churning process is that malayalam cinema that was so depended on the superstardom of 2 superstars and were creating films specifically for them has gone back to making films irrespective of them . Now scripts are written first and then cast. So mammotty is not available for Drishyam, The film can be cast with mohanlal without making any changes to film. What a relief!
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Rahini David
January 29, 2014
NASQKathir: “What punishment can be given to a female of the same nature?”
Which nature? And who is going to give out this punishment? Come on.. Come..
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Vanya
January 29, 2014
Wow, where’s all this hate for mallu movies coming from? Granted, I only watch the ones that get favorable reviews from friends/family (although, that’s true for the movies I watch in other languages as well), and those have not been disappointing. I think it’s safe to say the dark period of mallu cinema is over. Yes, most of these movies could stand to employ some stringent editing, but the performances and cinematography never fail to impress. Again, I’m only referring to the top movies of the year (e.g. Pranchiyettan and the saint, chappa kurishu, some of the shorts from 5 sundarikal). But IMO, the majority of movies in hindi and Tamil are just as forgettable as in Malayalam.
Also, what does indigenous mean here? Kerala has a massive diaspora, which has altered some sections of society considerably. Does that make their narratives any less authentic? Personally, I find it easier to relate to the “modern” female characters in Fahadh’s movies than the heroines from 1995-2010.
Finally, what Jai said. Ok, sorry for the off-topic comments.
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Rajesh
January 29, 2014
@Jai
I might not have been clear. English is real foreign language for me.
All I want to say is that, even our modern women, they can have sex only out of a promised marriage? If that character had just said, ok I am not a virgin I had a short affair in my village…, you knew that this lady is bold and different or modern material. And a character like Fahad’s would not have mind that kind of a dialogue at all.
In a movie in which a female character can comment about male butt, cant the heroine be more bold?
My wife is researching in a subject related to dance and anthropolgy. This has helped me read a few articles and studies and I am very much interested in Anthropology now, which have helped me be a better observer and study our behaviour too.
Our movies influence our people a lot, may it be Kerala or Tamil Nadu, knowingly/unknowingly. One aspect in which this is most evident is the hopes/thoughts an average man have about his wife . We grew up during an age, there was all sorts of maochism flushed out by MT and others, and believe me, a lot (vast majority actually) of Malayaalee men have their views about women, which are absolutely influenced by movies. That famous dialogue by MT from Vadakkan veeragadha (woman will cheat, she will cry and laugh inside etc) was like a commandment for men in my generation.
All our movies are written by men, and they keep on writing the same stuff of how they want the women to be.. They want a women to be virgin till marriage, or otherwise to be apologetic about a pre marital sex, while it is still heroic for the mail character to do as he please
There are more than couple of occassions in ‘Drishyam’ too – where mohanlal says women should be so and so (look after kitchen and household and other similar things).
If the modern movies do the same thing, how is it ever going to change. How do we expect our society to change. Or we just want our women to wear jeans** and talk english, but should be the same virgin before marriage and slave at home / dead body in bed room after marriage
(** – this can be another long discussion actually – how our men and women go after western dresses without any idea about body curves)
I can talk about this for long long time, but sorry friend, at office.. leaving..
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indianmalefeminist
January 29, 2014
I had the misfortune to see 22FK. This is a classic example of fauxminist/faux feminist film. If rape and revenge films were all “feminist”, then you could also say that “I Spit on Your Grave” is feminist. The only thing I can say good about this film is that it has a female lead. If this is the same as original, she had to “whore herself out” of getting her “revenge” within the film – I mean seriously? And as Rajesh rightly pointed out, her losing her virginity is shown as a “mistake”.
And being just reactionary doesn’t make it inherently feminist. That’s just lousy writing. If the director (of the original) had any intention of writing a good feminist film, he’d have put in some effort in characterization, which he absolutely did not. So what you get is a lousily written rape and revenge film.
PS: In agreement with Rajesh here, regarding movies and influence on society etc. And it’s not just one or two in isolation, we’re talking about a trend here, rather.
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auroravampiris
January 29, 2014
I guess what Rajesh is trying to say is that the idea of “feminine grace” is still prevalent in Kerala – Madonna/whore dichotomy included. As such, projecting women as confident sexual beings that are ashamed of their pre-marital sexuality is paradoxical and at the end of the day, is probably pretentious and pseudo-feminist, while actually endorsing patriarchal norms.
So the “look at dat butt” comment was just an obligatory shorthand for “these characters are MODERN” without following through on the premise of modernity and open sexuality. It’s the equivalent of a Christ pose as shorthand for a heroic character (without following through on the promise of sacrificial heroism). Or something.
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Rajesh
January 29, 2014
@ Vanya
As somebody who grew up watching the golden age of Malayalam cinema in the 80’s, I hope you will understand the frustration of a Malayaalee movie lover watching the present day Malayalam movies. By the way the period you mention 95 – 2010 was absolutely waste, except for very very few movies like Bhoothakannadi/Vanaprastham/Classmates to name some.
After watching movies with real smell of Kerala – like Panchavadippalam, Irakal, Nokketha doorathu kannum nattu, Padamudra, Thaniyavarthanam, Kireedom etc just to name a few(real original and indigenous movies) and directors like Padmarajan et all, to watch the present day stuff when 90% of movies are not original, but when the directors ‘pretend’ otherwise, it is normal I am frustrated.
Chappa kurishu was a terrible copy of the Korean movie. Pranchiatten had a interesting story and situations, but it was not a great movie, sorry. 2 shorties from 5 sundarikal was good, and surprisingly the director announced in advance that one shorty was inspired by Chinese. And most of the newbies are terrible copies too. The govt encourages this inspiration business by awarding the copies. (Pranayam was a terrible copy of Innocense), and now they say Amen should win many awards which is a terrible copy of Gucca. Amen even have copied back ground scores, but most Malayaalees are proud about these movies and think we have past the dark age.
It is only with Annayum Rasoolum, Manjaadikkuru, Ustad hotel, 101 chodyangal that I found something about which Malayaalee can be proud about. Especially ARasoolum was a brilliant peice of cinema. I am told the script of U.Hotel was 10 times better than the final movie.
Kerala has a massive diaspora and there are still lots of them, who still behave like Keralites.But the majority is still living in Kerala.
I dont find anything wrong when vast majority of Bollywood movies are about NRI’s, because I dont expect anything good out of Bollywood. I dont expect anything good out of the Vijay/Ajith/Surya kind of movies either. But when you watch Paruthiveeran, Aadukalam or Azhagar Saamiyin kuthirai or Kalavani or Thenmerkku paruvakatru or Naduvula konjam pakkathe kaanom or Marina and many such Tamil off beat movies, I am watching real Tamil, like I got to watch real Kerala in the 80’s. Be proud about Tamil, you even inspired Anurag Kashyap to make a movie like Gangs of Wasseypur.
I can only feel sorry about Malayalam film makers, when they end up remaking Nadodigal, Vazhakku 18/9 and lastly N.Konjam pakkathe kaanom to Malayalam. (Nadodigal was released in Kerala and still they remade it). Cant they make their own, after claiming to be intelligent, and they still look down upon Tamil audience and tamil cinema.
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MANK
January 30, 2014
@Rajesh
i am not sure what you are blaming MT for?. If it is for creating stereotypical female characters then you are way off the mark.I thought MT was the one who created some of the most complex and the far more realistic women characters in malayalam cinema.Just take the character played by gowthami in sukrutham.Even the unniyarcha character is a multidimensional character and not the virtuous superheroine of the legends.Well there are many more. If its for shaping the male psyche wrt women in a certain way , then you are right to an extend , but i would say in this regard that much of his male characters originate from a certain section\caste of the society that the views were very much in synch with them.
That famous dialogue by MT from Vadakkan veeragadha was like a commandment for men in my generation.
I cant vouch or negate that statement as i came after that generation 🙂 But when i watched the film i felt it was very much said in the context of the character of chanthu and the circumstances that brought about him to say it is very well established. Dont think that ought to be a sweeping generalization about women.Its same about mohanlal’s character in drishyam as well. He is a villager in the interiors of kerala and what else you expect him to tell his wife, to go out and look for a job and get a life of her own?.Now that would be what is totally dishonest of the character. I am very much against stereotyping in films. If mohanlal was shown as a citybred guy with modern outlook in everything else except when it came to women , then i too would have protested .
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Jai
January 30, 2014
@ Rajesh
“”If that character had just said, ok I am not a virgin I had a short affair in my village…, you knew that this lady is bold and different or modern material. And a character like Fahad’s would not have mind that kind of a dialogue at all.””
True, as far as the movie characterization went, Fahadh’s character would not have minded Rima’s character saying this. But, why do you feel she was lying about her past relationship?
It could very well be the truth, that previous guy *could* have given her the feeling he was serious about marrying her? I got the feeling the character was merely saying it like it was–that she had had this experience, that’s it. Somehow, I never got the feeling that she was shown trying to cloak her previous sexual experience behind a false excuse.
Hypothetically, if there was (finally) a decent guy Rima’s character hooks up with in future, in whom she confides about her relationship with Fahadh’s character. Would she not say, that this man cheated her, lied to her, took advantage of her? After all, that is what happened! So *why* is it, that just because a lady remarks on a guy having deceived her, she becomes ‘not bold’?
Broadly, I do agree with you on a trend one sees in movies, of portraying a ‘superficial modernity’ by dressing, slang, accent etc, but still harking back to the same old mindset. But just that in this particular instance, I feel the example you gave doesn’t fit too well, that’s all.
Cheers..
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Jai
January 30, 2014
@ Rajesh
“Especially ARasoolum was a brilliant peice of cinema”
here I will have to beg to disagree 😉
Didn’t you feel it was not ok for Anna to be literally stalked by Rasool in this film? It was reminiscent of the same old plot–hero literally harassing the heroine into accepting his love. Fine, Rasool is not shown to be so in your face or intimidatory in his pursuit, but surely, incessant and obvious staring, and following the girl around wherever she goes, is objectionable? Why should any modern woman put up with this? Forget just putting up with it, Anna is actually shown reciprocating his affections, no doubt ‘impressed’ by his ‘single minded’ pursuit. And she is not even creeped out, when he starts messaging her 3–4 times a day, having obtained her number by subterfuge.
Somehow the film did not work for me. This aspect of near stalking, IMHO, should definitely have been better handled.
Cheers…
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Rahini David
January 30, 2014
Jai: I don’t think the issue Rajesh is trying to highlight here is whether the girl is lying or not. This is what happened to this girl in this story’s universe. This is understood.
It is rather similar to the widow remarriage stories of 80’s and 90’s. The hero falls for a widow. She resists. He insists. She finally succumbs to his romance. But surprise of surprise. The first husband kicked the bucket before they ever consummated their marriage. The child in her hand is somebody she altruistically adopted. Meaning? She is a virgin only pa. Not to worry. Everything is fine. By widow we meant white saree, no kumkum variety. Not the type which actually had sex with husband.
In this case, premarital sex is fine ma. If you were raped or he promised you marriage. Otherwise no no. Regret and Guilt seem to wash off the “taint”. Sort of like an escape clause. Feel panitiyaa ma? Ok appo virgin maathiriyea vechukuvoom.
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Rajesh
January 30, 2014
@indianmalefemini / auroravampiris
you can explain it much better than me. thanks. How I wish I could write like you all.
@Mank, Believe me I had read almost everything available from MT even before I was 16 or 17. I adore him as a writer and it is not his mistake he creates great male or female characters. What I am saying is how his characters influence the people. All we talk about in public is how movie influence violence/acoholism/smoking etc among youth and adults. But no one talks about such matters, which are even more important.
But MT did create many male stereo types. Gowthami in Sukrutham was very different, but the whole movie was set up in a way as to feel sympathy for the male character, not to her. When you watch Sukrutham now, I can only see it as a poor male hero. But in my collage days, we were raving about that hero and how his wife let him etc..
His best heroine, for me, was Geetha’s in Panchagni, a real tigress. But you may recall, Panchagni didnt strike a chord in Keralan theatres. May be it made more money out of cassette sales.
All the movies actually will have a similar pretext for why the hero says so or acts so to the women around (In Veeragadha Chandu is fooled by Unniarcha and in Drishyam lal is a 4th standard villager). Remember – Veruthe oru bharya – towards the half time I was wondering how brave this director Akku Akbar was, and I was witness to many men walking out angrily and some even forcing their wives out (I live in Kochi), till then it looked like for once a movie is teasing a typical malayaali husband, but then see how it all ended up, typically blaming the woman again. I spoke to few young guys, friends of my cousins etc to know what they came out with – they ALL agreed with the director that the wife should have been more patient. Some even said, I would never let my wife back, if she goes away like that.Again, the man’s excuse is accepted well and all the mistake is by the woman.
All I am saying is our movies influence our people and our life, very badly.
@Jai. May I disagree here. I did not say she was lying to Fahad. Did I?
All I am saying is, Ashiq Abu, the man who pretends as new face for young modern Malayaalee men, even could not make his heroine say – ok I am not a virgin. Even his modern bold woman has to give the same old excuse (the only excuse our woman on scree can have ) – somebody cheated me.
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Rajesh
January 30, 2014
@RahiniDavid – thats a good example.
@ Jai – Anna is not a modern girl my friend, nor is Rasool. The only modern thing with them is that mobile phone, and that they both live and work in the present day Kochi. I see so many such Annas around me in Kochi, working for just 3500 – 6000rs a month, running around to work and back in the morning and late evenings in the bus and boat. From the beginning to end, Anna is a typical passive Catholic girl, who just accepts whatever comes to her (forces of life and her surroundings). Of course, Rasool is stalking her and that is how even now lot of love happens, outside educational institutes and work places. What other options boss, for the unfortunates.
I still remember the 3 months I spend on a bicycle following a girl in my village while doing my pre degree, until she finally told me NO.
Of course, you can disagree with the story of ARasoolum. But please do not tell me that was not a great cinema. For me, it was the first attempt in Malayalam cinema – outside the art scenario – in making a real cinema where visuals were more important than dialogues.
Dont you think, even now a lot of our movies are just ordinary theatre, with some camera angles. Or, you can still enjoy most of our cinema, if you just listen to the sound track (dont know the right English word – in Malayalam earlier cassettes used to be available called Shabdarekha. you listen them, and you know everything about the movie). Even this Drishyam – if there was a sound track to listen, you wont enjoy watching the cinema after, because all is about the dialogues. When that be the case, where is cinema. ARasoolum was the best attempt at breaking that mould, in which camera, performances and editor did the magic. There were not even clear cut dialogues for many scenes as the actors improvised, I am told.
In fact it was very indegenous too, you could smell Kochi and her culture in that movie. My wife, she is French, for the first time, applauded a Malayalam movie after watching AR. She was not happy with the story too, the ending of Anna, but she was ready to appreciate that it was 100 times better than any thing that I have shown her.
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brangan
January 30, 2014
All: Thanks for a great discussion — personal, impasssioned and also very informative for those who don’t know all that much about Malayalam cinema.
Rajesh: Dont you think, even now a lot of our movies are just ordinary theatre, with some camera angles.
I completely agree. There is this myth that the south has strong cinematographers, but these cinematographers (all very talented, sure) usually deliver only when driven by a strong director. Otherwise their work is mostly “pretty pictures,” and a lot of the time, these “pretty pictures” gets praised as good cinematography. I can count on one hand the number of films last year that had truly good cinematography — “Soodhu Kavvum,” “Vidiyum Munn…”
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auroravampiris
January 30, 2014
@Rajesh, I think you’re coming dangerously close to saying that the only worthwhile sort of cinema is one that glorifies, or celebrates, or condemns, in some way, what is perceived to be “Malayali” culture.
I don’t think that’s necessarily true – while I DO agree that most Malayalam films are informed by the local culture, they need not be that way all the time to qualify as good art. I think genre films, that use a local flavor to establish a universal storyline, also have a place in Malayalam cinema. Even stuff like Kerala Cafe could’ve been filmed anywhere in India or the world (where child trafficking is prominent for a certain storyline to work, of course) – but you can’t dismiss it as “art” simply because it doesn’t “say” anything about Kerala’s culture.
I still dream of seeing a science fiction film in Malayalam, for instance. Compelling stories are just that – compelling stories. Some of them may have a local flavor, some of them may not. I don’t see why every Malayalam film has to tell you something about the state to qualify as a good film.
Same with Bollywood (and what’s “Hindi culture” anyway?).
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Rajesh
January 30, 2014
@Brangan – sorry, I didnt want this to make it just about Malayalam. What you say about cinematographer is also very true about some directors. Some of the best directors of Malayalam cinema of 80’s were backed by excellent script, but now without such writers, they are unable to make anything worth watching.
@auroraavampiris – sorry if it looked like that. I didnt mean to say a Kerala movie is not art, as long as it didnt speak about Kerala culture. My writing ability is quite limited and I write in a hurry, between work (winking!) But when you look international cinema (I dont mean Hollywood), 90% of the best cinemas are always indigenous or built on their culture.
And I dont want all Malayalam cinema to glorify the Malayaali culture – a lot of our culture is just wrapped with hypocrisy. But without glorifying a local culture, a cinema can be built on a local culture, isnt it – for eg Annayum Rasoolum or for eg: that brilliant movie ‘Irakal’ from the 80’s, there are many examples for this in 80’s actually. I am sorry if I am not explaining it properly. quite complicated.
For eg, take that Shyamaprasad movie – Ore kadal, story happening in Kolkota, it doesnt have anything to do with Kerala , isnt it? It can be anywhere in the world, but that is a good one, and such movies are quite rare. And his own recent ‘Artist’. I dont think it is great as a cinema, but nice story and bloody brilliant performances, and it can be anywhere in the world, isnt it.
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Jai
January 30, 2014
@ Rajesh, Rahini
I get what you are saying on the whole ‘excuse’ aspect of the previous relationship bit. However, I still feel this is a prefabricated definition of what constitutes a modern bold woman. IMHO, modernity is a frame of mind, an attitude towards several things. A perfectly modern girl who wants a career, wants to wait till she finds someone of her own choice to get married (or maybe remain single if she so chooses), may not ever want to drink alcohol. Another one may like an evening nightcap and be the life of a party, but may be perfectly content to let her parents guide her in her choice of life partner. Is one ‘more modern’ than the other? Who gets to decide that? And is there something like a scientific definition of this trait?
Surely, there might be plenty of modern women who may want to wait till marriage for having their first sexual experience. So what? How does that make them ‘less modern’ than a woman who is open to a relationship before marriage?
You & I are approaching the situation from different perspectives. I agree with you wholeheartedly in this: it is very primitive to assume someone who had a pre marital sexual relationship is ‘wanton’ or ‘impure’. But the converse is not, and ought not, to be assumed–in that, just because someone wants to *wait*–for whatever reason–marriage? promise of marriage? whatever–its *their* choice. It does not presuppose that she is not modern.
Rajesh–one further thing about Annayum Rasoolum. Ok fine, you say Anna is not a very modern woman, she’s merely a passive type who happens to live and work in present day Kochi. Fair enough, lets concede that. So what? That makes it ok for a guy to be shown literally stalking her, and she’s fine with that? This has been the kind of portrayal that has been so irritating in so many movies, hindi, tamil, malayalam, take your pick. The hero is shown badgering, ‘teasing’ and literally harassing the heroine till she ‘gives in’. Just because Rasool here did not physically intimidate Anna, IMHO, does not make it ok to stalk her like this.
You say “Of course, Rasool is stalking her and that is how even now lot of love happens, outside educational institutes and work places.” Maybe so. In some parts of India, women, in this day and age, are forced to marry the men who raped them. So is it acceptable to you, that a movie shows the male lead doing this to the female lead and then being ‘reformed’ by her after marriage? (I think this has been the plot in some putrid movies in the past, I would dearly hope to God we are past that now.)
Cheers…
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Rahini David
January 31, 2014
Jai: I understand that a woman who decides to wear only sarees as she likes the way she looks it the attire can be completely mordern. If that woman wants to smoke like a chimney, that is her business as long as she doesn’t subject others to passive smoking. A sexually open woman can be a teetotaler and all the other combinations and permutations available in the mordern/conservative spectrum are fine. We are all slightly surprised by these things.
The Carnatic music singing atheist Maami and the miniskirt girl who loves thayir-saatham and the Pastor’s wife who swears. They all surprise us. Even a woman who has parlour-straightened hair and speaks with a thick pollachi accent surprises us a little. Why this is more so for women and less for men, I don’t know. But if that particular mystery is solved, I’d be a happier woman. For I can then explain it to people who are surprised about why I wear lipstick and still like kannadasan’s songs.
But the point I was making can be explained by two tamil movies. I am sorry that Malini isn’t one of them. I didn’t watch it yet.
First Dharmathin Thaivan. Rajini and Suhasini are engaged. They live in the same house. Rajini’s brother Prabhu calls her “Anni”. Rajini dies and she becomes a widow inspite of not being married to Rajini yet. She mourns his death. Prabhu finds Look-alike Rajini who is a Rowdy. Insists that Suhasini marry the new Rajini. She eventually does just that.
This movie has 2 major problems(and plenty of minor ones). One is that a woman who was in love with high-minded lovable Tamil professor would want to marry a Car-Thirudan for pure physical resemblance. WTF were they thinking?
The other problem that is more relevant to this thread is why didn’t they just show Suhasini as First Rajini’s wife. Why are they a very close couple who haven’t married yet? The movie offers silly answers. They wanted to marry after Prabhu finishes College. Why man? So stupid. The real answer is this. If second Rajini should marry Suhasini then she should be shown as a virgin. So they are almost a couple. Then why the widow garb? To show the intensity of her love it seems. Yeah Yeah.
The next is Aval Varuvala. Please check the Plot in wiki if you haven’t seen this movie. In this movie, Simran thinks she murdered her abusive husband Prithvi. Prithvi is shown as a person who videotapes Simran naked during their first night. When his friend remarks that Simran is very beautiful, Prithvi says “ok. Take her”. That is the type of guy he is. But. He never has sex with Simran who is his wife. What did he do after videotaping her naked? He went to sleep. We are given to understand that he wanted to keep videotaping her and just loan her to friends. Is he impotent? No no. Just a bit weird on these things.
She marries Ajith and is a virgin when she does so. It is the audience who get mindfucked.
The resemblence these movies have is not that they have a man and woman uniting as husband and wife and the woman happens to be a virgin. There is nothing at all wrong with this. They have basically taken a movie which had a married woman as heroine and forcibly inserted the virginity part into the screenplay. That is not right.
Why is Simran a sexually abused virgin rather than a sexually abused woman? Why couldn’t have the “muthamizh kaviyea varuga” song have been the honeymoon song for a newly married Suhasini? That was more straightforward in the sense that the story would have made slightly better sense. There is a jerk in the flow.
The similarity here with the Malini story is that Rajesh, indianmalefeminist et al feel that the “She was cheated” thing was forcibily inserted into this story even though the story would have been slightly better off without that particular dialogue or whatever.
The other instance is in Raja Rani where Nayantara is shown as throwing away a beer bottle untasted. Why show her with the beer bottle in the first place? If you show her with the beer bottle, then would the story been any different if she took a sip? Not at all. Right?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aval_Varuvala
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Rajesh
January 31, 2014
@Jai
In a normal society, where women are free to make decisions about their lives, and in an ambience where they will not be ‘caged in’ from anything that has to do anything with sexuality, like any man, any woman too will not want to wait until marriage for their first sexual experience. That is a nature call and it is normal.
I agree with you there are still woman in our country who want to wait for their husband. But that is normal when a woman is brought up in a society in which sex is only meant for making children.
Recently there was a famous release of a book, written by woman, about what to do for a long and good marriage – you know what, there was just one page on sex, in a whole book of more than 300 pages. What message does this give to an aspiring wife.
So its normal in our society women will wait for marriage for first sex, and men too. More than half of my life, I am 40 now, was in a village (I still go there every week) and even then I didnt see any girl (from the few I knew) who was not frustrated about having to wait for their marriage. You know, it is more a question of being scared about that amazing ‘4 people’. And since marriage is the most IMPORTANT aspect of India life, you cant fault them for being so isnt it. How can they get married with a ‘bad’ name.
Its true, Rasool is stalking. In this strict soceity of ours, the only time a boy and girl can hope to meet are when they are out of home and work.
There was a famous anthropology article (field work in Kerala done during early 90’s if I remember well), almost a decade old I think, in which the author writes about how most girls and boys tries to pick their ‘line’, when they go for weddings or temples/churches. Unless the girl is in a collage, that was the only time the girl is out there for a boy. Times have changed and now more women work. Still other than in the street, where can a boy or girl go and meet another. For 90% or above of our population these restaurants/night clubs are just , you know..
How do we know, Anna did not had any wish to have a boy friend or something. Every girl or boy enjoys the fact (even if they dont like that person doing it) there is someone out their who is interested in them, isnt it. In the movie, there is a scene in which Anna seems to be enjoying that feeling, while at her work during a tea break.
I agree with your point, and I am the first person to object if at all there is any force or violence being used against a girl, for anything. I am the first person to tell any girl whom I know, to not be NAIVE (Anna was !), and to be firm and decide only after time and efforts etc.. But this kind of love and tragedy does happen a lot.
But all this does not take away anything from the cinematic quality of Annayum Rasoolum. I agree you can disagree with the story and characters and I respect that.
In my village, couple of months back, its the wedding day. The real wedding and feast is over and the photographer is busy shooting the couple. The grooms parents have asked the driver to start the car and are hurrying and pushing the couple, as they want to be in grooms home before the auspicious time is over. As the couple move to the car, the bride says just a minute and moves to a group of friends. The groom and party are waiting. when they dont see the girl coming back, even after 10 minutes they look for her and she is not there. She is missing. Weeks later, we came to know that she had gone with a driver, who was driving the office cab to pick up staff. Even her work mates didnt know something was happening between them, as they never even saw both chatting at all.
Such things still happen around us Jai. Thats all what the movie is about. Some times they find happiness and sometimes its tragic.
I am hoping there will be a time in India, when any girl can firmly talk or approach any body they like, and will not be treated as a slut, any man can walk to a girl without the girl suspecting him as a prospective rapist. Hopefully.
Nice discussion anyways, thank you. I wish I didnt had to work. We could chat on such topics all day.
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Rahul
January 31, 2014
Interesting, if ultimately, narrow discussion on ideas like ‘modernity’, ‘feminism’, ‘realism’, ‘cultural subtext’ etc., ideas that are quite abstract, when not defined. All this that comes out of a review of a fairly bad movie.
I don’t want to comment on individual responses, but a few things…
One, why should a movie have a cutural subtext for it to be a good movie – a movie set in the extremities of space or existing in the backdrop of a writers creation, can be a good movie, if it stays true to the story it is trying to tell (Alien, Aliens, Eternal Sunshine, Aaranya Kaandam…)
Two, why should a movie have to be politically correct, why can’t it reflect life around it…(a hero must not stalk a heroine etc.), they say art imitates life and sometimes, characters in movies must be allowed to do what is true to their nature. Like someone wrote, the mohanlal character in Dhrishyam is a simple man from the rural heartland and his cultural outlook is shaped by the environment he grew up in. I do not agree to notions of political correct behaviour of the protagonists in our movies. Dhanush in Raanjhana is an example..where some critics called that ‘regressive’ behaviour of the character out
Three, there can be message movie, but if the sole purpose of the movie is supposed to drown us thru its teachings, it will result in bad cinema and more sadly dishonest cinema.
Examples from mainstream movies include 3 Idiots, Taare Zameen Par, most Shankar movies…these movies pretend to about the universe you live in and yet they have readymade answers to all your problems. I mean how real is that?
Four, Malayalam movies of late have fallen in the trend to be ‘new age’…yes good movies have been shaped out of them, Ustad Hotel (good movie making and a good script), Salt n Pepper (good movie making where the screenplay was not tight), Manjadikuru (good movie making and good script), Annayum rasoolum (good movie making and good script) are some of them. The common factors here are script and vision (director). Everything else is secondary, including acting, cinematography, editing, music etc. Individually they may stand out, but generally they can never rescue a badly made movie.
Finally, movie watching is an experience that is very individual and is not only shaped by who you are, but also the current state of your mind. I found that the Malini movie was dissappointingly bad and though I was not a big fan of the Malayalam effort, it was better in comparison. But that is neither here nor there, a movie must stand on it’s own and however preposterous a story it is telling, if it builds the universe into it and does not stray..it makes for a good viewing effort. An example I like to quote is the De Palma movies…shlocky yes…but we cannot deny his movie making skills, even if it is in the showy long loopy winding single takes that he likes to use these days. And yes, the only director who made an Ethan Hunt movie a brisk watch was him in the first Mission Impossible.
Sorry BR for taking up space and not yet mentioning your review. But, it is always a pleasure to come to this space in the corner of the cyber world…and you rarely disappoint. Even if I disagree with you, I like your articulation and for someone like me, who finds it tough to be concise, I am a huge admirer.
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brangan
January 31, 2014
All: Again, among the threads on this blog for rotten films that have inspired great comments/commentary, this thread has got to be among the top. Thanks.
Rahini David: Fully get your point about those films. But — and I’m not defending those films here — those films were also a product of their time, and what audiences would accept. or at least the perceived wisdom of what audiences would accept. I do wonder sometimes… had the virginity clause been overlooked, would these films have found acceptance?
Sometimes, we have to keep in mind that films are a product of the cultural climate they’re made in. And even the bold Hindi films we see today are happening only because they’ve broken away from the “playing to all audiences” mode. They don’t have to play in the B and C centres to make money, and can depend only on urban multiplexes for revenues. I wonder if that day will come for Tamil cinema, given the strict pricing model in the theatres.
Rahul: I do not agree to notions of political correct behaviour of the protagonists in our movies.
Agree 100%.
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Rahini David
January 31, 2014
BR: I completely agree with movies and moviemakers being products of their time. I had argued the same in Tharkuri’s rant about KB.
My own friend said the following words about Anandha Poongaarea. “I am very glad about the way the movie ended. I had already guessed that Meena was not the child’s mother. But according to the climax, Ajith knew all along that Meena was an unmarried girl. I almost heaved a sigh of relief. It is so weird na? Pursuing a widow and all that. I don’t like such stuff”. The girl who said this was 18 at that time.
My point is not “don’t keep a virgin clause” but “don’t pretend you are revolutionary after keeping a damn virgin clause”
Maybe Malini needed the “she regreted after all” clause. Maybe they didn’t want Torches and Pitchforks. I am not suggesting that the director face the music that Kushboo did. Just that it is nice to admit that it was a clause. My answer to the question “shouldn’t a mordern woman value virginity” is this. “She can. Not a problem at all. But it should be built into the screenplay and her characterisation and not stick out like a sore-thumb. We are not willing to buy it otherwise”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anantha_Poongatre
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Jai
February 1, 2014
@ Rahini, Rajesh : Peace 😉 I get what you are saying, and certainly, I accept there is valid way of looking at that moment in the movie (Here I mean 22 F K, not Malini..as I have not see the latter) from the perspective you have.
Rahini–Thanks for the examples. I have seen Aval Varuvala, but not Dharmatin Thaivan. My Sis & I had a hoot at Aval Varuvala and yes, that whole sub plot of Prithvi’s weird peccadilloes seemed, as you say, designed to portray Simran as a ‘virgin despite marriage’
😉 Also agree with you about Ananda Poongatre.
That said, somehow, for 22 F K, I did not get the feeling from that dialogue, that it was designed in a similar manner. I only got the feeling this character was stating her past experience as it was–a matter of fact statement, not designed by the director to ‘defend’ this past. Hence my opinion, that using this past as a litmus test to determine modernity or otherwise, was too limited. But oh well–this was my perspective. Lets agree to disagree here. 😉
Cheers..
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Jai
February 1, 2014
@ Rahul : One point in your comment I completely agreed with:
“Finally, movie watching is an experience that is very individual and is not only shaped by who you are, but also the current state of your mind. ”
This is similar to something that came up in an earlier thread too–ZNMD? Not sure–but this is very true.
BTW I too liked Usthad Hotel- it was a very good movie, well scripted, well acted and a joy to watch.
However, on this remark of yours,
“Two, why should a movie have to be politically correct, why can’t it reflect life around it…(a hero must not stalk a heroine etc.), they say art imitates life and sometimes, characters in movies must be allowed to do what is true to their nature. ”
I feel it is very unfortunate, that you have conflated this issue of stalking in an otherwise acceptable logic.
For example, in Usthad Hotel, there is a scene when Thilakan’s character collapses after a mild heart attack (or something similar). Faizi’s natural reaction is a fear that his granddad would use his ailment, as emotional blackmail to force him to stay. Now, this portrayal was a ‘politically incorrect’ moment, if it was a very ‘old fashioned’ movie, one would see the grandson immediately giving up his dreams to support his Grandpa, without a single moment of hesitation. This moment rang true in the film, and I think many people appreciated that it was an authentic portrayal.
But stalking–dude, this is not a ‘politically incorrect’ method of wooing, or a less-than-stellar courtship alternative. It is a criminal offense. Not to mention, an act which can potentially cause significant emotional trauma to the person being stalked. There is a difference, isn’t it?
I am not saying ‘never show stalking in movies’. Nor am I saying that the portrayal has to be in a message movie, drowning viewers with its preaching. I am only saying: don’t show stalking in a manner which seems positive (or at least, non negative). I think we can safely agree, that in Annayum Rasoolum, Rasool’s stalking was not shown in a negative light? The fact that Anna is shown, ultimately, responding favorably to this stalking makes it worse–for the message going out, is similar to all those hackneyed plots where the hero ‘woos’ the heroine by harassing her.
Yes, sometimes art imitates life, but surely, we can also agree that films are part of ‘popular culture’–and do form a reference point, to some extent, for shaping perceptions? Frankly, I find it unacceptable that a medium should show a crime in a (fairly) positive light.
I am not saying you are doing this–but I have heard a few people (in the offline world) dismiss stalking in a fairly ho-hum, chalta hai manner “boys will be boys” kind of thing. I wish they would remember Priyadarshini Mattoo–whose brutal, inhuman rape & murder, started off by the perpetrator stalking her. I think its high time, we all saw stalking in a much more serious light.
Cheers…
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Rajesh
February 1, 2014
@Rahini – My point is not “don’t keep a virgin clause” but “don’t pretend you are revolutionary after keeping a damn virgin clause” – well said. All what I was trying to say in all this comments i there in this single sentence.
@Jai – I dont mind the past experience of that heroine. What I mind is the prententions given by these young directors that they understand woman better and are modern and bla bla in everywhere they get a chance, and still go back to the same old ways.
Anyways lets all agree to disagree
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MANK
February 1, 2014
All here
That was a great discussion. I just thought i could sit out for some time on this as it was going so well.But had a hell of a time reading them.
@Rajesh no need to be embarrassed about your english skills pal, you put across the points pretty well, even though i dont agree with most of them 😉 , it was great to hear a different POV.
@Auroravampiris:I still dream of seeing a science fiction film in Malayalam
Have you seen ‘IYER THE GREAT’. It was not exactly science fiction, but still bordering on that. A good one with a wonderful perf by Mammooty. If you havent seen it , then do , i dont want to spoil things for you by revealing more 😉
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Arun
February 4, 2014
BR,
I watched the movie a few days back in a theater. It was a decent attempt- this is the movie review not my personal one. But when I came to know that this film sunk at the box office,I felt bad.Such bad feeling I have not experienced for any recent Tamil film of late.Moviegoers here have such weird tastes, they could accept a half-baked Saguni but reject a genuine film like Malini 22.
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N. Chandrakumar
March 15, 2014
Rajesh: I totally agree with your assessment on ARasoolum. It is a path breaking movie with great visuals narrating the story… Andrea and Fahad both did so well. Neelakantan got the award for best cinematography. I was so moved by the way the love between these two was captured without much dialogue. This movie will be in my memory for a very long time!
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