The Mirror of Kerala: Evolution and Identity in Malayalam Cinema
Influential directors include:
That identity is fraught: it is the communist who votes for crony capitalists; the literate person who consumes misogynistic soap operas; the migrant who yearns for a homeland that no longer exists; the upper-caste progressive who refuses to discuss caste. Malayalam cinema, from Chemmeen to Nanpakal , holds up a mirror that is also a map. It does not flatter its audience. It confronts them with their own contradictions. In doing so, it has transcended its "regional" label to become a universal chronicle of post-colonial modernity.
Kerala’s identity is inseparable from its communist movement. Mainstream Hindi cinema largely avoided direct ideological engagement with communism. Malayalam cinema did not. The 1970s and 80s saw the rise of the "parallel cinema" movement, but even commercial films carried a red tinge.
The Mirror and the Map: Malayalam Cinema as a Cultural Archive of Kerala, 1950–Present