‘Superhit Family Entertainer!’ This phrase means a lot of things, but what it definitely means for the Malayali audience is this: a motley crowd of entertaining, dramatic families. The Malayali psyche never truly freed itself of the bonds of hierarchical and controlled family environments. And the story always ends well (don’t ask how!) for the families. Here’s our list of the most well-played screen families.
Sukhamo Devi: Nobody captures the nuances of a family better than Venu Nagavally. There is Sunny’s family consisting of his strict father who is a retired judge, his sister, her husband and kid, Urvashi’s includes her parents and mother, Thara lives with her brother and family, and Nandan lives with his mother. All extremely relatable upper-middleclass and middleclass families and their ostensibly traditional lifestyle and thinking. There aren’t many loners in Nagavally’s films, they all cling to a family, marriage or friends, and the heroes and heroines are always closely linked to their roots.
Kudumba Puranam: This Sathyan Anthikad film revolves around a joint family that functions according to the old-fashioned hierarchy – father, mother, sons, daughter, daughters-in-law. It captured the essence of a lower-middleclass family with its share of monetary crunches, occasional joys, unexpected setbacks and lots of humour.
Sandesham: When those with opposing political leanings reside in the same family, it turns out to be a collection of hilarious moments. Like it is in this Sathyan Anthikad film written by Sreenivasan. There is a father, mother and four children, and their neighbours who function almost like an extended family. It’s the kind of family we instantly warm up to – two older sons who can’t seem to think beyond their politics, a daughter who ends up as a sad cliché, the younger college-going son, a mother who silently shoulders the family and a father who, having lived in another city, is still clueless about the mess at home. Sreenivasan succinctly allows the politics to simmer at home and as ruthlessly sets it aside and lets the traditional responsibilities of man and woman win over, stressing the importance of family and bonding all the while.
Kalipattam: Venu Nagavally plants two close-knit families around central characters – both struggling to stay afloat in different ways. There is the heroine’s family: father and mother struggling to stay happy because of their daughter’s illness, despite their enormous wealth, and the hero’s family: an ageing grandmother who finds it difficult to make ends meet. In the end they unite and their needs, totally unrelated to each other, are happily met.
Irakal: One of the most realistically sketched dysfunctional families in Malayalam cinema. All the idealistic family stereotypes find subversion here – they are all unapologetically corrupt. Be it the greedy rich planter, the alcoholic brother, the debauched sister, the weed-addicted younger brother, or their spouses. KG George brings all of them together and breaks a lot of archetypes in the bargain. Especially note the depiction of the daughter; in a family without scruples her mean streak isn’t out for judgement but counted as being one of them.
Swagatham: Nagavally’s predilection to fall back on familiar space is evident in this film. There is the traditionally derailed family of Fifi and Tuto with their father who took a younger woman as his second wife. The couple’s constant ego fights impair the peace in the household affecting the grown-up children. Yet Nagavally evens it out with a lot of little moments of fun and friendship between the siblings and their father.
Valsalyam: The archetypal Nair tharavadu run by the oldest living male member of the family – the Valyettan who hides himself behind a grumbling exterior. Other members simply line up in the order of male hegemony. Brother, sister, nieces, nephews, moms, grandmothers, Karanavar and his daughter. Women play second fiddle and are not allowed to take big decisions in the house while the men lead from the front. Lohithadas sketches Valyettan as an all-encompassing sacrificial figure and typically his immediate family too follows suit. Rest are simply players to lionise his greatness.
Ennennum Kannettante: Fazil too has this fixation for large families – grandparents, parents, cousins, nephews, etc. Here he brings them all together during the summer holidays, in the backdrop of a huge tharavadu. There is bonding, puppy love, indigenous village games, songs, dances and the warmth of relationships. It’s one of those tharavadus with inhabitants steeped in traditions, insistent on following every ritual and festival to the T.
Manichitrathazhu: What a perfect milieu to stitch together a psycho-horror thriller – a decadent bungalow filled with a joint family of elders, cousins and children, not to mention the aunt who fills Ganga with colourful tales of Nagavalli and her lover. Ganga’s backstory is about parental neglect and a grandmother who fed her fantasies. It’s a closely woven family with orthodox uncles and aunts who believe in sorcery, horoscopes and life after death. There are relationships with not so pleasant pasts and yet they all live in harmony. This movie wouldn’t have worked in another milieu.
Arayannangalude Veedu: This Lohithadas written dysfunctional family has bitter yesterdays to dig up and tomorrows to straighten out. A son who has run away from the fury of his parents due to some misunderstanding, an ailing mother who repents and awaits his return, and siblings who are in their own twisted little families. Family as an entity is beautifully sketched replete with misgivings, love, petty ego and sibling rivalries.
Mithunam: There is a lot going on in Sethu’s life and quite a bit of it comes attached with his family. It’s a crazy bunch – a brother and brother-in-law constantly at loggerheads, an old patriarch who gives occasional advice, a sister, and a few nosy uncles and aunts. The family in Mithunam is ordinary, funny, sarcastic, annoyingly relatable and depressing at times. When Sulochana weds into the household, she goes through the typical rollercoaster ride every new bride in a joint family goes through, including going on a honeymoon with the entire family. Despite his lone struggle to start a factory and refusing to burden anyone with his problems, Sethu remains attached to his extended family.
Bharatham: The typical joint family that lives in harmony, sharing joys and sorrows together. On an average day, the Kalliyoor household is filled with music and laughter. It shows us the generosity of a joint family where siblings love each other with abandon, take decisions for each other and remain steadfast in their loyalty despite having families of their own.
His Highness Abdulla: Royalty though they are, the large family in this Lohithadas script is simply there as namesake; they’ve gotten together with an agenda. They are hopeful of the wealth that would be bequeathed on them after the demise of the King. The love and respect simply stems from that need. True, at least in numbers it’s a large family, with sisters, brothers and their families, an adopted daughter, an ailing queen and a trusted Karanavar. Finally, it’s a total stranger who stands with them in their time of need.
Veendum Chila Veettu Karyangal: That regular Christian middleclass family with a patriarch, matriarch and their children. Sathyan Anthikad brings a lot of warmth to their relationships – between father and son, husband and wife, and between siblings. They are the kind of relatives we are so accustomed to seeing in our daily lives. The foundation of the family is so strong that despite parting ways bitterly they all come back to live under one roof in the end.
This article was originally published on Fullpicture.in. The News Minute has syndicated the content. You can read the original article here.