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Manichitrathazhu
Manichitrathazhu (transl. The Ornate Lock) is a 1993 Indian Malayalam-language epic psychological horror thriller film directed by Fazil, written by Madhu Muttam and produced by Swargachitra Appachan. The film stars Mohanlal, Suresh Gopi and Shobana. It also features Thilakan, Nedumudi Venu, Innocent, Vinaya Prasad, K. P. A. C. Lalitha, Sridhar, K.B. Ganesh Kumar, Sudheesh. The story is inspired by a real life tragedy that happened in the Alummoottil tharavad located at Muttom (near Haripad), belonging to central Travancore. The inheritor of the Alummoottil property and his domestic worker girl were murdered by the son-in-law after he had been written-off from the marumakkathayam system of inheritance prevalent in Kerala at the time. The murder gave rise to many local legends which serve as the basis for the film. Muttam, the writer of the film, confirmed the film was inspired by real-life events as he is a member of the Alummoottil tharavad through his maternal family.
Sibi Malayil, Priyadarshan and Siddique–Lal served as the second-unit directors, who worked separately but simultaneously with Fazil to significantly speed up the filming process. The cinematography was done by Venu, Anandakuttan and Sunny Joseph served as the second-unit cinematographers, and the film was edited by T. R. Shekar. The original songs were composed by M. G. Radhakrishnan, while the original score was composed by Johnson. Mohanlal, though credited as a lead actor, has been noted to have only an extended cameo, the main role being that of Shobhana, who won the National Film Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of Ganga / Nagavalli. The film won the National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment. The film also won three Kerala state awards -- Best Film with Popular Appeal and Aesthetic Value (1994), Best Actress and Best Make-up Artist (PN Mani).
The film dealt with an unusual theme which was not common in Indian cinema at the time. The film completed 300 days of run in many theatres. Manichitrathazhu was remade in four languages – in Kannada as Apthamitra (2004) (with some plot changes) which in turn was remade in Tamil as Chandramukhi (2005), in Bengali as Rajmohol (2005) and in Hindi as Bhool Bhulaiyaa (2007)– all being commercially successful. Madhu has been credited as the sole writer for the remakes after he filed a copyright suit against Fazil when the latter started being listed as the writer of the original script in the remakes. Geethaanjali, a spin-off directed by Priyadarshan with Mohanlal reprising the role of Dr. Sunny Joseph was made in 2013.
Manichitrathazhu is considered by many critics as one of the best films in Malayalam cinema and developed a cult following, years after its release. It has also been regarded as one of the best psychological thrillers in Indian cinema. It was listed among the "70 Iconic Films of Indian Cinema" by Mint in 2017. A digitally remastered 4K Dolby Atmos version of Manichitrathazhu was released in theatres on 17 August 2024.
Nakulan and his wife Ganga decide to take a vacation to Nakulan's ancestral village in Kerala. Despite warnings from elder family members, Nakulan insists on staying at his ancestral home, the Madampalli Tharavad, which is apparently haunted. The rest of the family join them, not willing to leave them alone there. The couple is cautioned to avoid certain parts of the house, particularly the "Thekkini," a locked room. About 150 years ago, the family's patriarch and the ruling feudal lord, Karnavar Sankaran Thambi, fell in love with dancer Nagavalli during a trip to Thanjavur, and brought her to the mansion. However, Nagavalli was already in love with dancer Ramanathan, who moved into the nearby house and continued seeing her. When the Karnavar discovered the affair, he killed them and legend has it that Nagavalli's vengeful spirit is in the Thekkini.
A sceptical and curious Ganga enlists the help of Nakulan's cousin Alli, to unlock the Thekkini. After they unlock it, people start seeing apparitions of a woman, objects mysteriously break, and Ganga's sari catches fire. Performing puja does not help and the family eventually begins to believe that another of Nakulan's cousins, Sreedevi, may be possessed by Nagavalli's spirit.
Nakulan calls on his friend Dr. Sunny, a renowned US-based Indian psychiatrist, to investigate the situation. Sunny soon encounters mysterious events, including an attempt on Alli's life, as well as a woman's voice singing and dancing in Tamil emanating from the locked Thekkini at midnight. Impersonating the Karnavar, Sunny converses with the voice, who reveals herself as Nagavalli and vows revenge on the upcoming Durgashtami night by killing the Karnavar. Sunny also goes to a place called Evoor and talks to the people there. He also foils someone's attempt to kill Nakulan by giving him poisoned tea and blaming Sreedevi, locks her up in her bedroom.
On the night before Durgashtami, Sunny finds Ganga supposedly being harassed by Alli's fiancé, Mahadevan, who insists that he is innocent. Sunny deduces that Ganga is orchestrating all the problems in the house and is suffering from dissociative identity disorder which has taken on the personality of Nagavalli. The Nagavalli persona perceives Mahadevan as Ramanathan and Nakulan as Karanavar, and wants to kill Nakulan on Durgashtami night. Sunny explains everything to Sreedevi who starts to help him. Meanwhile, Nakulan's family, skeptical of Sunny's treatment, calls in tantric expert Pullattuparam Brahmadathan Namboodiri, but it turns out he is an old friend of Sunny's and decides to help Sunny cure Ganga.
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Manichitrathazhu
Manichitrathazhu (transl. The Ornate Lock) is a 1993 Indian Malayalam-language epic psychological horror thriller film directed by Fazil, written by Madhu Muttam and produced by Swargachitra Appachan. The film stars Mohanlal, Suresh Gopi and Shobana. It also features Thilakan, Nedumudi Venu, Innocent, Vinaya Prasad, K. P. A. C. Lalitha, Sridhar, K.B. Ganesh Kumar, Sudheesh. The story is inspired by a real life tragedy that happened in the Alummoottil tharavad located at Muttom (near Haripad), belonging to central Travancore. The inheritor of the Alummoottil property and his domestic worker girl were murdered by the son-in-law after he had been written-off from the marumakkathayam system of inheritance prevalent in Kerala at the time. The murder gave rise to many local legends which serve as the basis for the film. Muttam, the writer of the film, confirmed the film was inspired by real-life events as he is a member of the Alummoottil tharavad through his maternal family.
Sibi Malayil, Priyadarshan and Siddique–Lal served as the second-unit directors, who worked separately but simultaneously with Fazil to significantly speed up the filming process. The cinematography was done by Venu, Anandakuttan and Sunny Joseph served as the second-unit cinematographers, and the film was edited by T. R. Shekar. The original songs were composed by M. G. Radhakrishnan, while the original score was composed by Johnson. Mohanlal, though credited as a lead actor, has been noted to have only an extended cameo, the main role being that of Shobhana, who won the National Film Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of Ganga / Nagavalli. The film won the National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment. The film also won three Kerala state awards -- Best Film with Popular Appeal and Aesthetic Value (1994), Best Actress and Best Make-up Artist (PN Mani).
The film dealt with an unusual theme which was not common in Indian cinema at the time. The film completed 300 days of run in many theatres. Manichitrathazhu was remade in four languages – in Kannada as Apthamitra (2004) (with some plot changes) which in turn was remade in Tamil as Chandramukhi (2005), in Bengali as Rajmohol (2005) and in Hindi as Bhool Bhulaiyaa (2007)– all being commercially successful. Madhu has been credited as the sole writer for the remakes after he filed a copyright suit against Fazil when the latter started being listed as the writer of the original script in the remakes. Geethaanjali, a spin-off directed by Priyadarshan with Mohanlal reprising the role of Dr. Sunny Joseph was made in 2013.
Manichitrathazhu is considered by many critics as one of the best films in Malayalam cinema and developed a cult following, years after its release. It has also been regarded as one of the best psychological thrillers in Indian cinema. It was listed among the "70 Iconic Films of Indian Cinema" by Mint in 2017. A digitally remastered 4K Dolby Atmos version of Manichitrathazhu was released in theatres on 17 August 2024.
Nakulan and his wife Ganga decide to take a vacation to Nakulan's ancestral village in Kerala. Despite warnings from elder family members, Nakulan insists on staying at his ancestral home, the Madampalli Tharavad, which is apparently haunted. The rest of the family join them, not willing to leave them alone there. The couple is cautioned to avoid certain parts of the house, particularly the "Thekkini," a locked room. About 150 years ago, the family's patriarch and the ruling feudal lord, Karnavar Sankaran Thambi, fell in love with dancer Nagavalli during a trip to Thanjavur, and brought her to the mansion. However, Nagavalli was already in love with dancer Ramanathan, who moved into the nearby house and continued seeing her. When the Karnavar discovered the affair, he killed them and legend has it that Nagavalli's vengeful spirit is in the Thekkini.
A sceptical and curious Ganga enlists the help of Nakulan's cousin Alli, to unlock the Thekkini. After they unlock it, people start seeing apparitions of a woman, objects mysteriously break, and Ganga's sari catches fire. Performing puja does not help and the family eventually begins to believe that another of Nakulan's cousins, Sreedevi, may be possessed by Nagavalli's spirit.
Nakulan calls on his friend Dr. Sunny, a renowned US-based Indian psychiatrist, to investigate the situation. Sunny soon encounters mysterious events, including an attempt on Alli's life, as well as a woman's voice singing and dancing in Tamil emanating from the locked Thekkini at midnight. Impersonating the Karnavar, Sunny converses with the voice, who reveals herself as Nagavalli and vows revenge on the upcoming Durgashtami night by killing the Karnavar. Sunny also goes to a place called Evoor and talks to the people there. He also foils someone's attempt to kill Nakulan by giving him poisoned tea and blaming Sreedevi, locks her up in her bedroom.
On the night before Durgashtami, Sunny finds Ganga supposedly being harassed by Alli's fiancé, Mahadevan, who insists that he is innocent. Sunny deduces that Ganga is orchestrating all the problems in the house and is suffering from dissociative identity disorder which has taken on the personality of Nagavalli. The Nagavalli persona perceives Mahadevan as Ramanathan and Nakulan as Karanavar, and wants to kill Nakulan on Durgashtami night. Sunny explains everything to Sreedevi who starts to help him. Meanwhile, Nakulan's family, skeptical of Sunny's treatment, calls in tantric expert Pullattuparam Brahmadathan Namboodiri, but it turns out he is an old friend of Sunny's and decides to help Sunny cure Ganga.