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Yavanika (transl. The Curtain) is a 1982 Indian Malayalam-language mystery thriller film written and directed by K. G. George. It stars Bharath Gopi, Mammootty, Nedumudi Venu, and Jalaja.[1][2][3] Yavanika is one of George's most celebrated films; it received wide critical acclaim[4][5] and is regarded by critics as a masterpiece of Malayalam cinema.[6][7][8]
| Yavanika | |
|---|---|
 Poster | |
| Directed by | K. G. George |
| Screenplay by | K. G. George S. L. Puram Sadanandan (dialogues) |
| Story by | K. G. George |
| Produced by | Henry |
| Starring | Bharath Gopi Nedumudi Venu Jalaja Thilakan Mammootty |
| Cinematography | Ramachandra Babu |
| Edited by | M. N. Appu |
| Music by | M. B. Sreenivasan |
| Distributed by | Apsara Pictures |
Release date |
|
| Country | India |
| Language | Malayalam |
Plot
editVakkachan, a critically acclaimed theatre director, runs his drama company, Bhavana Theatres. He and his theatre troupe are preparing to drive to a late-night show. One of the performers, Kollappally, arrives late, claiming he had lost his keys.
On the way, they pick up Rohini, another performer. Vakkachan questions Rohini about the troupe's tabla player, Ayyappan, with whom she lives. Rohini says she is unaware of his whereabouts and that he had not returned home the previous night. Ayyappan does not turn up for the show.
Two weeks later, Vakkachan reports Ayyappan as missing. CI Jacob Eeraly takes up the investigation and interrogates the troupe members individually. During these interrogations, each member tells their own story of Ayyappan's unfaithful nature, drunkenness, and violent tendencies. Rohini shares that she is living with Ayyappan against her will. The inspector also discovers that Ayyappan had forcefully snatched—and later sold—a pair of earrings Rohini had bought as a wedding gift for her sister.
A month later, Ayyappan's body—stabbed with a broken glass bottle—and a key chain with the engravings "J.K." are recovered from a paddy field midway between the theatre and Rohini's house. Jacob suspects the initials represent "Joseph Kollappally" and quietly arrests Kollappally after his theatre performance. Kollappally confesses to the murder, but his confession does not entirely convince the inspector. The inspector investigates further and retrieves a shard of the glass bottle used as the murder weapon from Rohini's house.
The next day, the troupe anxiously awaits Kollappally to join them for a big show, unaware of his arrest. The police plan to use Kollappally as a ploy to identify Rohini's role in the murder and allow him to phone the troupe to inform them that he will perform in the show. Kollappally arrives late to the venue and tells Rohini backstage that he has been arrested for murder. Rohini, in a panic, takes the stage and publicly admits to killing Ayyappan.
Rohini confesses the murder to the police and tells them her motive: after Ayyappan had sold her earrings, he taunted Rohini, saying he would trap her sister for his pleasure and ruin her life—as he did to Rohini. His taunts angered her, and she stabbed him. She sought Kollapally's help, and he hid the body in the paddy field.
Following her confession, Rohini and Kollapally are taken into custody by the police. The rest of the troupe silently boards their bus and departs from the scene.
Cast
edit- Bharath Gopi as Ayyappan, a tabla player and drunkard
- Nedumudi Venu as Balagopalan
- Jalaja as Rohini, the regular female lead role in the plays
- Thilakan as Vakkachan, a critically acclaimed theatre director
- Mammootty as CI Jacob Eeraly, the police officer in charge of the investigation
- Venu Nagavalli as Joseph Kollapally
- Jagathi Sreekumar as Varunan
- Vijayavani as Molly, Jacob Eeraly's wife
- Thodupuzha Vasanthi as Rajamma
- Sreenivasan as Chellapan
- Ashokan as Vishnu, Ayyappan's son
- Mohan Jose as Danny
- Kuttyedathi Vilasini as Ammini
Production
editDevelopment
editThe film uses the Rashomon effect, a storytelling technique in which different characters provide contradictory interpretations or recollections of the same event.
George comments on the film's development: "I was staying in Madras those days when I got a call from Henry. He told me he was interested in making a Malayalam film with me and asked me if I had any subjects in hand. This led to a meeting at hotel Taj Connemara where I told him about two subjects. This included Adaminte Variyellu and Yavanika. Henry was keen about Yavanika and gave me the go-ahead."[4]
Filming
editThe entire shoot was in the suburbs of Vattiyoorkavu in Thiruvananthapuram.[4]
Release and reception
editThe film was released in four theatres. The response was moderate for the first week, but it later picked up and became both commercial and critical success.[4][8][9] Yavanika was released along with Ivan Oru Simham (1982), starring Prem Nazir, but surpassed its box office collection.[10] Film critic Kozhikodan included Yavanika on his list of the ten best Malayalam movies of all time.[11] Premlal of The Cue felt that "Yavanika adhered to the characteristics of mainstream cinema and opened the way for broad possibilities to embrace the theme and characters with complexity, approaching them philosophically and psychologically."[6]
Accolades
editYavanika won three awards at the 1982 Kerala State Film Awards:[12]
- Best Film (shared with Marmaram (1982) directed by Bharathan)
- Best Screenplay – S. L. Puram Sadanandan, K. G. George
- Second Best Actor –Thilakan
The film won one award at the 1982 Kerala Film Critics Association Awards:[13]
Soundtrack
editThe music was composed by M. B. Sreenivasan.
| No. | Song | Singers | Lyricist | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Bharatha Muniyoru Kalam Varachu" | K. J. Yesudas and Selma George | O. N. V. Kurup | 4:34 |
| 2 | "Chembaka Pushpa" | K. J. Yesudas | O. N. V. Kurup | 3:57 |
| 3 | "Machaanethedi" | Selma George | M. B. Sreenivasan | 1:37 |
| 4 | "Mizhikalil Nirakathiraayi" | K. J. Yesudas | O. N. V. Kurup | 3:26 |
References
edit- ^ "Yavanika". www.malayalachalachithram.com. Retrieved 16 October 2014.
- ^ "Yavanika". spicyonion.com. Archived from the original on 27 November 2022. Retrieved 16 October 2014.
- ^ "Malayalam's Big M: Mammootty Turns 63". NDTV. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018.
- ^ a b c d K. Pradeep (19 November 2007). "A classic called Yavanika". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 21 August 2008. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
- ^ Suresh, Anandu (27 September 2023). "The anatomy of KG George's Yavanika: One of India's finest mystery thrillers". The Indian Express. Retrieved 19 July 2024.
- ^ a b പ്രേംലാല് (10 May 2022). "ജീവിതത്തിൻ്റെ അദൃശ്യ യവനികകൾ". The Cue (in Malayalam). Retrieved 25 October 2022.
- ^ "A filmmaker who understood the craft's aesthetics; adieu auteur: Remembering K G George". New Indian Express.[dead link]
- ^ a b "A landmark in Malayalam film history". The Hindu. 29 April 2017.
- ^ "മലയാള സിനിമയിലെ കരുത്തനായ പോലീസ് ഓഫീസര്, അതിശയിപ്പിച്ച എട്ട് വേഷങ്ങള്!!". Filmibeat. 26 March 2016.
- ^ "ജീവിതമെന്ന അസംബന്ധനാടകം". Janayugom (in Malayalam). 31 March 2010. Archived from the original on 7 October 2013. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
ഇവനൊരു സിംഹം എന്ന പ്രേംനസീര്-ഷാനവാസ് ചിത്രത്തോടൊപ്പമാണ് യവനിക റിലീസ് ചെയ്തത്. എന്നാല് പ്രേംനസീര് ചിത്രത്തേക്കാള് കളക്ഷന് നേടിയത് യവനികയാണ്.
[Yavanika released alongside the Premnaseer-Shanawaz film Evanoru Simham. But it was Yavanika that collected more than Premnaseer.] - ^ Kozhikodan (2001). മലയാള സിനിമയിലെ എക്കാലത്തെയും മികച്ച പത്ത് ചിത്രങ്ങൾ [Malayala Cinemayile Ekkalatheyum Mikacha Pathu Chithrangal: 10 Best Films of All Time in Malayalam Cinema]. Calicut, India: Poorna Publications.
- ^ "Kerala State Film Awards (1969 - 2012)". Archived from the original on 3 March 2016.
- ^ "Yavanika : One of the greatest mystery thrillers ever". Entertainment. 15 June 2017. Archived from the original on 21 July 2022. Retrieved 21 July 2022.