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Chithram

  • 1988
  • 2h 39m
IMDb RATING
8.7/10
6.7K
YOUR RATING
Mohanlal, Renjini, and Nedumudi Venu in Chithram (1988)
MalayalamComedyDramaMusical

A woman hires a stranger to pose as her husband because she doesn't want her ailing father to know that her fiance broke their engagement.A woman hires a stranger to pose as her husband because she doesn't want her ailing father to know that her fiance broke their engagement.A woman hires a stranger to pose as her husband because she doesn't want her ailing father to know that her fiance broke their engagement.

  • Director
    • Priyadarshan
  • Writers
    • Priyadarshan
    • Sreenivasan
  • Stars
    • Mohanlal
    • Nedumudi Venu
    • Renjini
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    8.7/10
    6.7K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Priyadarshan
    • Writers
      • Priyadarshan
      • Sreenivasan
    • Stars
      • Mohanlal
      • Nedumudi Venu
      • Renjini
    • 15User reviews
    • 1Critic review
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 2 wins total

    Photos2

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    View Poster

    Top Cast17

    Edit
    Mohanlal
    Mohanlal
    • Vishnu
    Nedumudi Venu
    Nedumudi Venu
    • Kaimal
    Renjini
    Renjini
    • Kalyani
    Poornam Vishwanathan
    • Ramendra Menon
    Sreenivasan
    Sreenivasan
    • Baskaran Nambiar
    • (as Sreenivasen)
    M.G. Soman
    M.G. Soman
    • Jail Superintendent
    Thikkurissy Sukumaran Nair
    Thikkurissy Sukumaran Nair
    • Revathy's Father
    Maniyanpilla Raju
    Maniyanpilla Raju
    • Murugan
    Sukumari
    Sukumari
    • Bhaskaran's mother
    Innocent Vareed Thekkethala
    Innocent Vareed Thekkethala
      Lizy
      Lizy
      • Revathy
      Ganesh Kumar
      Ganesh Kumar
      • Revathy's brother
      Shanawas
      Shanawas
      • Ravi
      Jagadish
      Jagadish
      Bhagyalakshmi
      Bhagyalakshmi
      • Kalyani
      • (voice)
      Bobby Kottarakkara
      Bobby Kottarakkara
      • Marriage broker
      Unni Mary
      Unni Mary
      • sister of Srinivasan
      • Director
        • Priyadarshan
      • Writers
        • Priyadarshan
        • Sreenivasan
      • All cast & crew
      • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

      User reviews15

      8.76.7K
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      Featured reviews

      8mailrashmi-36693

      Blockbuster

      Chitram is the kind of movie that one can watch numerous times and not get bored. It's considered to be a Malayalam classic. Although it has melodrama, Romance and action, this movie stands out for its Comedy. Lalettans acting is top notch. I want to rate this 8.5.
      10vishalbitvv

      Best Movie

      Despite doing it for the money, it was for a noble cause. Kalyani and Vishnu are initially feuding with each other but they do fall in love eventually. My favorite parts of this movie are the songs Paadam Pootha Kaalam and Eeran Megham. I also like the Lalettan fight scene with Sreenivasan and Shanavas. My least favorite part is MG Soman's introduction as he appears to be menacing. The scene that I hate is where Soman hits Lalettan to the ground after the chase scene in the woods. Vishnu is an escaped convict from prison but there's a backstory as to what made him that. MG Soman is the prison warden. He is married to Revathy (Lissy) who is a mute dancer in the movie and they couple have a child. One night, Vishnu discovers a man seeing her behind his back and he assumes that she's having an affair with him. He attacks the man and picks up a knife which he accidentaly kills Revathy with. I don't think Vishnu should've been charged with murder because the death of Revathy was an accident over a misunderstanding. A manslaughter charge would be more reasonable along with imprisonment for a number of years. Vishnu didn't deserve the death sentence as it's a very harsh punishment given the situation. The last scene where Vishnu asks the warden if he could acquit the death penalty makes me want to cry. The entire climax makes me want to cry also. Even though Lalettan is smiling in the last scene, it's still sad to see taken away to be killed :(. Despite that, I still think this Lalettan Classic is a masterpiece and will be for years and generations to come.
      10ericsaju-12403

      One of the best EVER GREEN MOVIE...

      One the Best movie from malayalam movie industry. A Wonderful script from Priyadarshan and Crew. The story of the movie is Great.... All the actors in the movies also do a great work to Make movie as a great success.. Mohanlal is acting as a Prisoner for doing a crime.

      But he got a chance to act as a husband for daily wages. The Songs in the movie is also one of the best.... A MUST WATCH MOVIE...
      10unmeshmenon

      mohanlal's one of the greatest movie

      This is one of the greatest hits mohanlal and priyadarshan have ever made. The Malayalam film industry discovered MG Sreekumar, the talented young singer from his excellent songs. The movie is stuffed with comedy scenes although it has a tragic end. Mohanlal, Renjini, Nedumudi venu, Sreenivasan have acted so naturally that the movie is unforgettable. the movie was one of the biggest commercial hits of Malayalam in the late eighties. Mohanlal has showed his talents by his versatile acting throughout the movie. Two great combination of the times, Mohanlal-Sreenivasan and Mohanlal-Priyadarshan made the film one of the biggest hit in Malayalam.
      9pcdadda

      Pure entertainment

      Chitram is possibly the biggest commercial success in Malayalam cinema having run of nearly two years at the box office. But more than its commercial success the movie remembered for two striking reasons - [1] The emergence of Mohanlal as a star and actor par excellence, and [2] The epoch of the golden era of Malayalam movies typified with excellent music and strong story lines.

      To summarize, the movie is about Mohanlal a youth who is struggling in life and is dogged by fate. He agrees to be a makeshift husband to Renjini at the behest of Nedumudi Venu to keep Renjini's father happy during his last visit to India. The chemistry between Lal and Renjini is quite good and their squabbles make up a major part of the movie. The movie has twist in the end, which is best seen than described.

      Lal is the fulcrum around which this movies revolves. He displays emotions and comic timing both with remarkable ease and his scenes with Venu are brilliant and endearing at the same time. Venu is an apt foil for Lal while Sreenivasan has a great comedy track. Sreeni also deserves credit for coming up with a script that keeps the viewer hooked throughout. Renjini is competent.

      The highlight of the movie (besides Lal's path-breaking performance) is the fantastic music which is popular even after two decades. This was the first Malayalam movie in which original soundtrack was accompanied by the hero's voice-over. Chitram marks the beginning of an era of great Malayalam movie music.

      Overall, a must-see for all Malayalam movie fans.

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      Related interests

      Mohanlal in Drishyam (2013)
      Malayalam
      Will Ferrell in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004)
      Comedy
      Naomie Harris, Mahershala Ali, Janelle Monáe, André Holland, Herman Caheej McGloun, Edson Jean, Alex R. Hibbert, and Tanisha Cidel in Moonlight (2016)
      Drama
      Julie Andrews in The Sound of Music (1965)
      Musical

      Storyline

      Edit

      Did you know

      Edit
      • Trivia
        Holds the record as the longest-running Malayalam film. It completed more than 370 days theatrical run with regular shows in three releasing theaters, a record still unbroken in Malayalam cinema, and ran 405 days in one theater.
      • Connections
        Featured in Vadakkunokkiyantram (1989)

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      FAQ15

      • How long is Chithram?Powered by Alexa

      Details

      Edit
      • Release date
        • December 23, 1988 (India)
      • Country of origin
        • India
      • Language
        • Malayalam
      • Also known as
        • Chitram
      • Production companies
        • Shirdi Sai Creations
        • Shirdi Sai Productions
      • See more company credits at IMDbPro

      Tech specs

      Edit
      • Runtime
        • 2h 39m(159 min)
      • Color
        • Color

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