THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The solidarity movement ‘Avalkoppam’ (With Her) that began as a counter to the dramatic show of support for Dileep by the powerful male members of the film industry will find an echo at the 22nd IFFK that will begin on December 8.
‘Avalkoppam’ will be the title of a package of seven Malayalam films that will be showcased at the fest. At IFFK, however, the women have let the men take over. If it were the powerful male members of the industry who threatened to isolate the victim in the Dileep issue, the films in the package is a kind of reminder that once upon a time there were males in the industry whose heart went out to the wronged women. The villains will now be the heroes.
The seven films picked by Ms Pillai, all of which had attained cult status over the years, have powerful women characters created by the greatest male talents in Malayalam film history. The full title of the package, therefore, is ‘Avalkoppam: Male Auteurs and Malayalam’. At the heart of all the seven films are women who instinctively crave for liberation, and whose rebellions are mercilessly crushed by a society drunk high on self-righteousness.
Two are written by M. T. Vasudevan Nair: Kuttyettathi (directed by P. N. Menon) and Parina- yam (filmed by Harihar- an). There is one each by by K. G. George, (‘Adami- nte Variyellu’), Padmara- jan (‘Deshadanakili Karayarilla’), I. V. Sasi (‘Avalude Ravukal’), P. Bhaskaran (‘Kallichell- amma’), and T. V. Chandran (‘Alicinte Anweshanam).
‘Parinayam’ was a poetic take on the public trial of Kuriyedathu Thathri, a Namboodiri lady who was accused of indulging in sex with a multitude of partners in the early 20th century. ‘Kuttyettathi’ and ‘Deshadanakili Karayarilla’ were far ahead of their times in that they featured women with unorthodox sexual behaviour. ‘Adaminte Variyellu’ is a collection of three stories of women from three layers of the society, and their sexual choices or lack of it. Both ‘Kallichellamma’ and ‘Avalude Raavukal’ had exceptionally bold and independent women who nearly killed themselves trying to hold on to their individuality.
The package has been curated by Meena T Pillai, a film academician who had written extensively on women in Malayalam cinema. “The films listed in this section discuss the courage and determination of women in the earlier periods to fight back the orthodox and inhuman practices that existed in the name of tradition and social norms,” Ms Pillai said.
