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MALAYALAM CINEMA'S REPRESENTATION OF THE

1
BROSKHAN. P (first & Corresponding author)
(Research Scholar, Dept. of Journalism and Mass Communication,
Faculty of Science and Humanities, SRM Institute of Science and
Technology, Kattankulathur - 603203)
2
Dr. RAJESH. R (Co-Author)
(Associate Professor, Dept. of Visual Communication, Faculty
of Science and Humanities, SRM Institute of Science and Technology,
Kattankulathur - 603203)

Abstract

Caste-related issues and traditional Dalit life patterns have fuelled stereotypes about caste-
based violence in Malayalam cinema that are intended to arouse sympathy, dread, or humor.
On the other hand, contemporary movies emphasise subaltern rebellion in both personal and
public discourses. This piece tries to analyse the 2022 Malayalam film “Puzhu” (Worm
(Ratheena, 2022)). The critique is built around two major issues: how caste identity and
caste-based violence function within the family unit and how dominant patriarchal discourses
complicate women's subjectivity both inside and outside the home. The study identifies the
various components that create Dalit subjectivity and explores the problems associated with
caste pride. Obeying casteist rules and regulations. It examines how gender-based violence
and caste-based violence are examples of structural violence within the theoretical framework
of structural and cultural violence and discusses the legitimacy recognised by various cultural
elements.

Keywords: Cultural Violence, Dalit, Caste Identity, Malayalam Cinema

Introduction

Malayalam cinema has recently begun to address the difficult questions of caste-based
violence through subtle but 'positive representations,’ as opposed to the usual pejorative
portrayal of the lower classes and the Dalit community as 'commodities' that elicit laughter or
fear. Until recently, these characters were "victimized or glamorized by mainstream cinema
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to propagate a distorted identity of secular India" (Nisha, 2020). However, these

Until recently, caste violence was not as overt in Kerala as it was in many parts of India.
Honor killings by family members of relatives deemed to have brought the family into
disrepute (Edachira, 2013) were not recorded in Kerala until a young man named Kevin from
the Kottayam district was brutally killed by his wife. Although caste discrimination and
subsequent acts of violence operate in Kerala society, the incident became a matter of
concern. It was discussed and debated on news desks and social media platforms. (The
Mammootty-starrer Bhishma Parvam (2022) is dedicated to Kevin and the film consciously
tries to address caste issues, though not as a central feature of the film). Interestingly, despite
the subtle and understated references to caste-based violence in some extravagant films, these
films rarely look at its domestic aspect. Two films, Unda (The Bullet) (Lee, 2019) and
Antakshari (A Musical Play) (2022), briefly discuss how caste-based discrimination pollutes
policing and places questions of caste within the law-and-order system. Again, these are
based on social aspects of caste.

Cinema as a medium has not until recently addressed the psychological and physical
atrocities that casteism can cause in the domestic sphere. In other words, as (Goutham Raj
Konda, 2020) argues, “With few exceptions, Indian cinema has played blind to caste
discourses for most of its course”. In this analytical study, I want to identify and document
the ways in which questions of caste identity and caste-based violence permeate the domestic
space within the masculinity structure within which that microcosm of society is expected to
operate. Therefore, reviewing earlier representations of casteism in Malayalam cinema is
important as a starting point (Galtung, 1985)s.

'To be rescued subalterns' trope

Dalit characters in Malayalam cinema had another function: to support the arrogance of the
hero, who often belonged to a higher caste and class. "Social ecology" supports their always-
preferred view of bodies of color with the caste gaze. Their crises emphasize the elitist
mindset in film narratives that are "socially conscious and politically correct" (Guru, 2013).
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In Malayalam cinema, upper-caste heroes are usually "assisted by a supporting character who
may be a staunch companion, subordinate or servant, usually dark-skinned and belonging to a
religious minority" (Koickakudy, 2021).

In many of the films, rape was an integral part of the screenplay not only to adhere to the then
conventions of mainstream cinema but also as a tool to evoke pity and fear in the minds of
the spectators. Sexual violence for the perpetrators is “a metonymic celebration of territorial
acquisition” (Spivak, 1988) and the portrayal of rapes on screen, even if it is camouflaged
with the “pure” intention to evoke pity, in fact is the “gaze” (Laura Mulvey, 1975) in
operation. The savarna gaze on female bodies of Dalit is yet another perpetration of aesthetic
vandalism. As (Ajith Kumar A S, 2022) points out, in many of the films, especially when the
sexual violence is pictured there is an eroticization of violence which is a conscious attempt
to please the male/ upper caste gaze, thereby dismissing the argument of “showing” violence
to present or represent caste-based gender violence on silver screen. Dalit females and their
bodies are thus within the “mutually bracketing” caste and gender.

Casting caste to evoke laughter

As briefly mentioned in the previous section, caste has been used as a laughing stock in many
Malayalam films. This was achieved by portraying a Dalit character or characters, with or
without disabilities or eccentric behavioral issues, as comedians on screen. A dark-skinned
actor or actress is used for this purpose, often to portray their characters as idiots, thus
creating comedic scenes. Some of the actors chosen to portray Dalit characters like Harisree
Ashokan, Khuvavattam Pappu, Mala Aravindhan, Indran, Salim Kumar, Srinivasan, and
Kalabhavan Mani created laughs with silly dialogues.

In the early decades of the 21st century, Malayalam cinema saw more body politics on
screen. Disabilities, skin color, and various occupations classified to certain castes were
laughed at. The typical portrayal of female characters with Dalit identity was derogatory
referencing the character's name with the name of a place and as prostitutes in theatres.
Brings laughter. Most of such depictions were subplots or sequels within the film to the larger
or 'serious' plot. For example, the Tamil, Kannada, Telugu, and Hindi remakes of the film
Manichitrathalhu (The Ornate Lock) (1993) featured the story of a Brahmin priest and a
lowly priest. The role of the Dalit priest is to create scenes for laughter. There were scenes
where this Dalit priest, who played the role of Pappu, was confused by the mental illness,
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symptoms, and treatment of the film’s male protagonist, Mananoyali. Mocking a Dalit
character's mental illness drew laughs in theatres, but later these narratives were discussed as
a cruel rejection of human rights (Gopal Guru, 2016).

The to-be-civilised subalterns

The civilized project left behind by the British long ago has been picked up by the more
privileged Indians through countless discussions held secretly on various social media
platforms. This can be represented in films that always present an upper caste/class hero
against a Dalit villain. (Edachira, 2013) states that in Indian mythology, antagonistic
characters mainly assure (demons) and are depicted as dark (in appearance and character).
Likewise, villains in popular cinema are often portrayed as dark-skinned. Also, darkness is
used as a "lower" class/caste symbol in most films (52) Gangsters in Malayalam films are
almost always Dalit’s who engage in anti-social activities on the screen. Psychological
conditions throughout society have normalized it. The audience cheered when villain x was
beaten or, if not killed, the hero was taught a good lesson. The stereotypical representation of
Dalit’s as villains has undergone changes recently. However, the trope still exists to subtly
communicate casteist ideals for filmmakers who often come from privileged caste and class
backgrounds. All films depicting upper-caste villains or bourgeois rapists were social cause
films, whether mainstream or parallel. These films were conscious aesthetic documents of
past atrocities on Dalit’s. 2019's Mizhi Thurakku (Open Your Eyes) and 2022's Pathpadham
Notand (Nineteenth Films) are historic in their genre.

A re-presentation of caste

In the second half of the 21st century, especially with the rise of the new generation of films
and the advent of active social media engagement, and the public's right to unedited reviews
on these platforms, caste was given representation in low-Malayalam films. During this time,
films in Malayalam began to address caste questions differently, and on-screen
representations became more representative than the romanticized versions that filmmakers
used for their commercial value. Thus, the representation often led to the presentation of
marginalized lives, anxieties, and caste-based violence. A major change was the role of the
Dalit protagonist played by prominent actors and portraying the events in a believable and
realistic manner. While most films looked at caste-based violence and underscored the need
to empathize with the downtrodden, some films showed rousing mates like Prajapathik
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Dhooran Muttiyapol (2022) and Kaala (2021). However, the former rebellion is suppressed,
whereas in the latter and Antakshari (2022), the uprising involves bloodshed and poses
ethical questions to the audience of right or wrong. All these films are heavily socially
oriented and deal with the social aspects of casteism and caste-based violence. Perhaps, this is
the first time that Malayalam cinema has cast star-worthy actors as caste fanatics, a dictator
for themselves and others precisely within their homes, defining the social order.

In movies, instead of representing casteism and the social order driven by it, filmmakers
present scenes that destroy caste and undermine human life. In particular, the films deal with
how the house’s interior is designed according to the caste equations that the bigots
(protagonists) create. First, it is essential to analyze how patriarchal notions of caste identity
permeate the interior and how this is reflected at the macro level outside the family as it
exists in society. Within the framework of caste-based violence presented in films, it is also
important to elucidate the victimization evoked by the narrative.

Home spaces and caste play

Worm depicts the enigmatic monogamous life of a high-caste police officer, a widow fondly
known as Kuttan, with her son Kichu in her luxurious apartment. Her forbidden friendships,
her paranoia that someone is looking for her, her obsessive-compulsive behavior towards the
child, and her mixed feelings of hatred and affection for living with her estranged sister
Bharati and her husband, Dalit theater activist Guttappan, contribute. Bharti and Kuttappan
are moving into the same apartment as Kuttan challenges his already disturbed state of mind
(Bharathi and Kuttan are married), eventually, his caste sentiments overcome the affectionate
brotherhood he harbors within him. As a result, both his sister and brother-in-law were
murdered. The film's final scene, which seems like a forced appendage to embellish the
theme, depicts Kuttan being killed by an aggrieved youth waiting for his turn to avenge the
devastation that Kuttan has wrought on his family. The film shows Worm, the protagonist's
caste consciousness, and inter-caste marriage as common strains of hatred. The marriage of
the protagonist's sister to a Dalit man stirs up domestic problems, and the caste pride fostered
by Kuttan makes Kuttappan hate and ostracize the Dalit community his sister marries.

Food, shelter, and culture of untouchability

The food cooked or served by the sister living with the inferior man becomes untouchable for
the boy. Even though there are frames that capture the tug of war that goes through the child's
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mind about accepting an untouchable's food, there is a part where he eats what she cooks and
brings and serves a sense of disgust and perversion. The social norm is visible in the behavior
of the character. Kuttan's elite neighbours wonder how people can eat "such" food. Definitely
not a reference to the pizza but to the dark-skinned guy who delivers it. The inviolability of
food is underlined here, although caste-based violence is not so easy to understand from this
framework. Even in metropolitan India, the caste system operates based on food and habitat.
Malayalam cinema has not yet discussed the issues of renting houses to non-Brahmins or
Dalits. In “Puzhu,” Bharathi and Kuttappan struggle to get a rented house as the house
owners are reluctant to provide a house to a Dalit person.

Madhu, an Adivasi youth from Kerala, was beaten to death by a mob, and his death is still a
topic of debate in Kerala. If one looks at the same case, it is clear that his racial and ethnic
identity motivated the gang to commit this heinous act. Labeling someone as powerless and
using that powerlessness or their subjective position as weapons against them is a cruel fate
that sophisticated modern society still fosters. A man's basic needs are constantly violated
based on the caste system, which is emphatically presented in this film.

Practices of caste play

Caste language interludes in the “puzhu” movie to show the stigma associated with Dalit
bodies and their lives. In the worm, Kuttan sees Bharati's portrait made by meets Kuttappan,
who boldly declares that the two are in love. The then police officer Kuttan uses his
legitimacy and power to deny Kuttappan his social and artistic rights violently and tells
Kuttappan: “Go clean some toilets and make a living”. This idea of linking caste with a
particular profession has its roots in the Chaturvarna system. While mainstream Malayalam
films mocked Dalit’s for specific occupational roles, such narratives maintained that Dalit’s
could not be granted upward mobility on the social ladder and the identity of an educated and
professional social born simply because they were Dalit’s. Birth in Worm, the arrogance of
casteism and toxic masculinity emerge through several dialogues.

Kuttan's caste pride and caste arrogance make his son vulnerable, and his behavior at school
is negatively affected. His written work reveals all the abuses his father inflicts on him, in
which he replaces the word 'father' with 'mother.’ The child, even at school, cannot be true to
his feelings of hatred towards his father because it has created a toxic mother who will carry
out cruel, punitive measures. Kuttan's benevolent despotism explains the nods, tears, and
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even tears that his paralyzed mother tries to do, especially in the scene where Bharathi and
Guttappan bring her home to see her after Kuttan informs her mother. “She makes them do it
(murder).

As Babu (2022) points out, the use of the trophy awarded to Guttappan for his performance in
the play Takshak has implications. In the Parikshit and Takshak Puranas, the sage is shown
not as a Brahmin in Kuttappan's play but as a tribal sage, while Parikshit insults the play,
combining caste, class and political power, as shown in many idols. A sage threw a dead
snake on the neck of a meditating sage. The dramatist's attempt at this reinterpretation of the
myth brings up the question of violence based on the power assigned to people from various
social cadres. Kuttan is part of this continuum of violence.

The monument is a sculpture of Nangeli, a legendary Dalit woman who fought against the
breast tax imposed by the Travancore kings (Jayan & Sankaranarayanan, 2017) and presented
her breasts in the king's alleys with a sickle. He came to collect taxes. Kuttappan, before
being attacked by Kuttappan, says that he wants to have a baby girl whom he wants to name
Nangeli. It becomes a decisive moment in the film when the lower caste name Nangeli
suddenly provokes Kuttappan, and Guttappan uses the Nangeli sculpture he won for his
artistry as a weapon to take his life. Allusions to the legendary woman's struggle against the
violation of fundamental human rights are linked to the artistic revolution through the
theatrical performance performed by Kuttappan. However, when Nangeli loses his life,
Guttappan is also destroyed by the caste system in society. Any kind of social or educational
recognition achieved by the Dalit people infuriates the casteists, and that irritation brutally
violates the fundamental right to live with dignity.

Casting women into caste equations

Even within the institution of marriage, the gender purity of the women of the family, who
are 'subtracted' by Dalits, is unimaginable to them. The pride associated with caste and
descent plays a crucial role in Kevin's honor-killing cases and in countless cases of
psychological trauma inflicted on women who engage in romantic relationships with
outsiders of caste and clan. When it is coupled with a gender aspect, it becomes doubly
oppressive for women. In this film, the woman (Bharti) who dares to choose her marriage
fate is an upper-caste woman, but since she is married to a Dalit man, Bharti is also subjected
to violence. Their bodies are an essential part of the argument. The entire caste narrative and
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narrative of shame revolves around the female body and its sexual purity. Giving birth to a
Dalit man's child is seen as pollution, and caste pride is hurt as it brings disrepute to the
family. The female characters, who at least assert their individuality when it comes to
choosing a life partner, suffer severe emotional turmoil.

Conclusion

Analyzing film narratives reveals the ways in which caste-based prejudices and subsequent
violence stem from domestic fronts. Unleashing it in society has unpleasant and disastrous
consequences for the individual and society. Instead of following the usual set of props and
tropes to represent casteism, the film describes the functioning of caste both domestically and
socially. Instead of using the dark skin of Dalit men and women to evoke pity, laughter, or
fear, the filmmakers facilitated platforms where the characters affirmed their individuality
and existence rather than vulnerability. The films underscore the structural violence
perpetrated on the domestic front through social sanctions that effectively normalize violence.
Underpinning cultural violence subtly represented through dialogues of stereotypical casteist
characters, would legitimize the heinous crimes of neglect and destruction. The analysis
reveals the question of gender within caste equations. For women, subjugation is not only
based on their caste identity or caste identity that has been changed due to their marriage but
also refers to their haughty subscription to gender inequalities and patriarchal rule. Those
who break the conventional norms of patriarchal rules and try to perform their roles outside
of the expected gender roles assigned to them by the masculine social system are ostracized
or murdered or both. This subservient role of women is portrayed, and lack of support from
the family leads to more significant social exclusion, which is accurately presented through
the character of Bharati. The film emphasizes that psychological violence is more damaging
than physical violence and is generally ignored in inter-caste marriages and family problems.
The film's depiction of the downtrodden, whether their subjugation is defined by their caste
identity or gender identity, transcends the conventional representation of helplessness and is
very clear, assertive, and unapologetic about their identity and their rebellion against the
social order. It prohibits caste discrimination, express or implied.

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