Purappad

1989 158’ col Malayalam d Joshi pc MAK Prod. st Poulose sc/dial John Paul lyr O.N.V. Kurup c Vipin Das m Ouseppachan lp Mammootty, Saikumar, Parvathi, Sitara, Thikkurisi Sukumaran Nair, Innocent, Balan K. Nair, Jagathi Srikumar, P.E. George, Adoor Bhawani

Big budget film with a massive cast chronicling the journey of an entire village, uprooted by a bursting dam, to a hilly terrain 160 km away. Starting with the depiction of a communal riot between Hindus and Muslims, the film repeatedly proclaims its anti-sectarian message exemplified by the principal character Vishwam (Mammootty). Locations and studio settings are both used effectively, esp. the hilly landscape where the villagers resettle, but the film’s scale, both technical and rhetorical, sometimes leads to a loss of directorial control.

Film