22 WOMEN-CENTRIC FILMS IN MALAYALAM worth your time

films Akashadoothu & Kannezhuthi Pottum Thottu

There have been several memorable and powerful female characters in Malayalam cinema since its conception, those that stand on par with their male counterparts and those that stand alone. They variously showed us different facets of women- their extraordinarily courage, their selfless love, their all-consuming anger, their amazing endurance, their unparalleled beauty and so on and so forth. Gifted with a talented league of writers, our films have often discussed issues pertaining to the fairer sex- both serious and in lighter vain- and such female oriented subjects with memorable women protagonists have always been very well accepted as well. Following is a list of some of the best films in Malayalam dealing with women-centric subject.

22. Oridam 2005

directed by Pradeep Nair

written by Pradeep Nair

featuring Geetu Mohandas, KPAC Lalitha

The woman in Oridam is a social outcast relentlessly seeking redemption from her quarantined life that the world looks down upon. The nameless prostitute played by Geetu Mohandas also got her the Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress in 2004.

21. Aadaminte Variyellu 1983

directed by K.G. George

written by Kallikad Ramachandran, K.G. George

featuring Suhasini, Srividya, Soorya, Bharath Gopi, Venu Nagavalli

This K.G. George film parallels the oppressed lives of three women in a male dominated world, and their distinctive approach towards their individual crises followed by the shockingly different method they end it for themselves.

20. Susanna 2000

directed by T.V. Chandran

written by T.V. Chandran

featuring Vani Vishwanath, Bharath Gopi, Nedumudi Venu, M.R. Gopakamur, Narendra Prasad, Charuhasan

The woman Susanna outwardly is a concubine to five men, but deep down she gracefully dons multiple roles of mother, daughter, sister and wife to these men so much so that she becomes the hub around which their different lives revolve.

19. Perumazhakalam 2004

directed by Kamal

written by T.A. Razak

featuring Meera Jasmine, Kavya Madhavan, Maukkoya

It tells the endearing story of two women- one, a Hindu widow mourning the death of her recently deceased husband and the other a determined Muslim wife who seeks her forgiveness in writing to acquit her man on death sentence for killing the widow’s husband by accident.

18. Kallichellamma 1969

directed by P.Bhaskaran

written by G. Vivekanandan

featuring Sheela, Prem Nazir, Madhu, Adoor Bhavani, Adoor Bhasi

The titular Chellamma is beautiful, independent, impulsive and foul mouthed. She is also wittily sarcastic, but all the cunning she employs to ward off the hawk-eyes of the world around her fails when an entire village goes crazy on her and ostracizes her as “Kalli”-Chellamma.

17. Sallapam 1996

directed by Sundar Das

written by A.K. Lohithadas

featuring Manju Warrier, Manoj K. Jayan, Dileep, Bindu Panicker

The woman in Sallapam is an orphaned housemaid called Radha with a penchant for music and singing, and is pinned between two men in her life- her mentor who loves her dearly and a young singer she falls in love with who has little means to take her in.

16. Avaludey Ravukal 1978

directed by I.V. Sasi

written by Aleppy Sheriff

featuring Seema, Ravikumar, Soman, Sukumaran

                                                       

Raji played by Seema in her acting debut in I.V. Sasi’s sensational blockbuster is a teenaged prostitute who is forced to take up this line of work to make a living at the same time look after the well being of her younger brother.

15. Kannezhuthi Pottum Thottu 1999

directed by T.K. Rajeev Kumar

written by T.K. Rajeev Kumar

featuring Manju Warrier, Thilakan, Biju Menon, Abbas

With ire in her eyes and ache in her heart, the woman here is an unforgiving daughter who is out to avenge the murder of her parents and uses her charms to seduce and ambush the debauched landlord responsible for it.

14. Nandanam 2001

directed by Ranjith

written by Ranjith

featuring Navya Nair, Prithviraj Sukumaran, Aravindar

The woman in Ranjith’s evocative drama is a young and neglected housemaid living amidst a torrent of unfulfilled dreams, who suddenly finds herself at the center of attention of two young men, one from the family and the other from the neighborhood.

13. Akashadoothu 1993

directed by Sibi Malayil

written by Deenis Joseph

featuring Madhavi, Murali, Nedumudi Venu

The woman in Akashadoothu is a dying mother desperately seeking safe haven for her four kids before surrendering to leukemia. She sets out in search of four households as nobody agrees to take in all four of them together.

12. Ente Sooryaputhrikku 1991

directed by Fazil

written by Fazil

featuring Amala, Srividya, Suresh Gopi

The two women in Fazil’s Ente Sooryaputhrikku portray an endearing mother daughter bond through their unconventional arrangement. Amala’s eccentric daughter and Srividya’s pompous mother are equally unforgettable.

11. Kannaki 2001

directed by Jayaraj

written by Sajeev Kilikulam

featuring Nandita Das, Lal, Siddique, Geetu Mohandas, Manoj K. Jayan, Kalpana

In Kannaki, woman appears in her vixen avatar. The femme fatale here is a version of the notorious Cleopatra who is as tender as is seductive in luring her prey into her web of deceit, witchcraft and tantric love.

10. Padam Onnu Oru Vilapam 2003

directed by T.V. Chandran

written by T.V. Chandran

featuring Meera Jasmine, M.R. Gopakumar, Irshad

The underage wife of a man already married with child in T.V. Chandran Social drama innocently yearns to finish high school but emerges pregnant from her intoxicated trysts with her devious husband who then abandons her in the name of outstanding dowry.

9. Shantham 2001

directed by Jayaraj

written by P. Sureshkumar, Madampu Kunjikuttan

featuring KPAC Lalitha, Seema Biswas, I.M. Vijayan

The women in Jayaraj’s cry against violence are two mothers forming the two sides of a coin that represents a senseless political killing, one of the victim and the other of the perpetrator.

8. Vaishali 1988

directed by Bharathan

written by M.T. Vasudevan Nair

featuring Suparana Anand, Sanjay Mishra, Geeta, Babu Antony, Nedumudi Venu

Even though it is the sensuousness of a woman that meats up the central figure in this mythological drama, the exploitative intend of a greedy society mooching on her is what makes the portrayal dauntingly relevant.

7. Aaranyakam 1988

directed by Hariharan

written by M.T. Vasudevan Nair

featuring Saleema, Devan, Vineeth, Parvathy, Jagannatha Varma

The woman in Aaranyakam is an eccentric and spontaneous teenager who is not too keen to find a place in the conventional lineup to fit in the normal world. She is also a dreamer who is not even close to finding a life goal.

6. Sancharam 2004

directed by Ligy J. Pullapally

written by Ligy J. Pullapally

featuring Suhasini V. Nair, Shruti Menon, KPAC Lalitha

The two girls in Sancharam are childhood friends who increasingly grow close to each other to eventually fall in love, but not without the world around them frowning at the unconventional liaison vehemently trying to divide them with social standards.

5. Chinthavishtayaya Shyamala 1998

directed by Sreenivasan

written by Sreenivasan

featuring Sangita, Sreenivasan, Thilakan, Innocent

Sreenivasan’s second directorial venture follows the growth of a dependent housewife to a self-reliant bread earner of the family with two daughter when her escapist husband bails on them in the pretext of his eccentric passions.

4. Parinayam 1994

directed by Hariharan

written by M.T. Vasudevan Nair

featuring Mohini, Manoj K. Jayan, Vineeth, Shantikrishna

It is the principles and determination of woman that is highlighted here through the struggles of a young widow who is shunned first by family and later by society for bearing child outside of wedlock.

3. Naalu Pennungal 2007

directed by Adoor Gopalakrishnan

written by Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai, Adoor Gopalakrishnan

featuring Nandita Das, Geetu Mohandas, Padmapriya, Manju Pillai

Adoor’s adaptation combining four short stories by Thakazhi portrays the lives of three very different types of women- the virgin, the eternal virgin, the housewife and the prostitute each chronologically falling in different time periods illustrating the status of women in society over the years.

2. Deshadanakili Karayarilla 1986

directed by Padmarajan

written by Padmarajan

featuring Shari, Karthika, Mohanlal, Urvashi

Friends Sally and Nirmala signify every woman out there who yearns to break free from societal norms and fly free. Their endearing bond with strong romantic undertones is also one of the best ever friendships portrayed in Malayalam Cinema.

1. Panchagni 1986

directed by Hariharan

written by M.T. Vasudevan Nair

featuring Geeta, Mohanlal, Nadia Moidu, Murali, Chitra

The woman in Panchagni is the byproduct of a merciless world that victimizes women as a rule. But she is not ready to take it in a stride or to give in. Instead she fights back with so much anger that the repercussions victimize her anyways making her an exclusive target.

Then there are also…

Mangamma 1997

Thirakkatha 2008
Nokkthadoorathu Kannum Nattu 1984

Kanamarayathu 1984

Om Shanti Oshana 2014

Enu Swantham Janakikutty 1998

Kakothi Kavile Appooppan Thadikal 1988

Ezhuthapurangal 1987

Kazhagam 1996

Chattakari 1974

Khaddama 2011

Pranaamam 1986

Ente Upasana 1984

Achuvinte Amma 2005

How Old Are You? 2014

22 Female Kottayam 2012

Click here for 15 GREATEST FEMALE CHARACTERS in Malayalam Cinema