There is no doubt about the fact that the golden age of malayalam movies was during a period of 80 to 95.Any ardent movie fan would agree to this.Many unconventional people would like to disagree with this cliched statement.But the truth remains the same.The age witnessed the creation of movies which were huge commercial success,eventhough they were made in moderate budgets.The movies not only evoked positive response from general public but made it to the podium at many national and international stages.
Most of us do not want to be saying at our old age that there 'WAS' a time when good movies were made.But the status quo of the malayalam movie industry induces such thoughts in any ardent movie fan's mind.Have we failed to notice that we continually watch movies like kilukkam,gandhinagar2nd street,varavelpu,oru vadakkan veeragatha,In harhar nagar,Ramjirao speaking,Manichitrthazhu(the list goes on)?People have begun to accept the fact that ,they are still favourites and being watched again and again,not just because they are classics, but there are not much choices available ,because many new age movies have failed to touch the standard of quality these films have rendered.We cannot just write this off as generation gap because we see young generation carrying around the clips of these movies in their cellphone-the movies those were released when they were 5 or 6.
The question here is ,do we lack talent?My answer would be no.With the advent of all forms of inforevolution,the exposure level of individuals have reached its pinnacle ,thereby fostering every talent available.
Then what is lacking?We will have to admit that it is the right enviornment that we lack.We lack proper scene for new generation to come in and showcase their talent.The scenario has changed for worse in kerala.Earlier a new director or a script writer who had green ideas could come in and find capital,make the movie with new stars and expect audience to watch,if their ideas were good and the film well made.Now that is not the case.The number of people watching a movie with an open heart has come down.There would not be any disagreement to the fact that mammooty and mohanlal are stalwart actors who form the foundation of the malayalam movie milieu.But it is not a healthy phenomenon that the whole industry depends on these people for existence.It has been noticed that no new ideas could be tried without these 'bankable' stars in the cast.It would be hard for new directors without the dates of huge stars to debut.Even if they could they cannot be sure about faring well at the box office.Our audience have lost the patience to watch out for new talents.The state of affairs has provoked comments from K.G.George,the chairman of KSFDC who has gone to the extend of condemning Mohanlal and Mammooty for their over celebrated stardom and for dictating the kind of movies being made and thereby diluting the aesthetic value of malayalam movies."There is nothing wrong with them, but for the last 25 years they have ruled the roost and this trend is not good. There are times when films are made according to the whims and fancies of these superstars. Over the years the aesthetic value of Malayalam films has been lost out to pure commercialization," a news agency quoted the director as saying.
The other side of it is that,even if some movies are made boldly,the acceptance level of the new fresh ideas among audience have come down drastically.Times are gone when tamilians were mocked by mallus for creating gods out of stars like Rajni and Kamal.The wind is now blowing in the exact opposite direction.When they come out with great acheivements like subramaniapuram,we are still blowing whistles to superhuman acts of our great actors.-hero who is a gunda and classical musician at the same time,hitting 20 people or another hero romancing 18 year old (when no effort is being made for suspending the disbelief of audience about the age of the hero),or hero and villain both played by a single actor ,because these characters were played by him some 20 yrs back in two different movies and both of them were hits.A lot more embarassing instances can be sited.
It is not unfair to doubt whether the writers of the industry have run out of ideas,when we hear the announcement of new films like Sagar alias Jacky reloaded,To harihar nagar,Hello Mayavi and a lot more in the pipeline. All sequels of blockbusters of past.
BEWARE:Now that there is no point in talking to the people in the film industry because they are so profit oriented.There is no use telling the that it is time you gave back to the industry that has nurtured you and given you life and respect.
But as audience we should be cautioned
- about times when malayalam movie industry would be dead.
- about times when we would ,like philipinos or africans,have to watch movies made in other languages either with malayalam dubbing or subtitles.
- about the next generation, mocking and laughing at what our superheros do onscreen now.
- about times when we would have only memories,past and no present or future for our great movie industry.
All the politics have added oil to the fire.Macta,fefka, amma and what not?Hope these would do something to keep our industry alive .Preserve it for our future generations of malayalees to watch.
As audience we too carry on our shoulders, the responsibility .As viwers it is time to THINK while we watch a movie,because movies to a keralite have always been a part of its cultural milieu.Movies are for fun,but not just for fun.It is the reflection of our times just like any other art form.It is a medium of expression.So take a stand on the side of the malayalam movie,watch and encourage new ideas,discard foolish performances,nurture the talent.Be a part of the thought movement which will help the onward journey of our visual culture into a bright future.
