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| Home > Regional Films > Malayalam Films > Adoor Gopalakrishnan
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| | Adoor Gopalakrishnan
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 Adoor Gopalakrishnan was one of the directors, who was a genius and a humanitarian director who saw life with a focused eye and depicted it with a rare insight. This noted filmmaker`s Elippathayam, brought him international recognition and the British Film Institute Award as the `maker of the most original and imaginative film`. His films such as Chemmeen (The Shrimp, 1968), Mukhamukham (Face to Face, 1984), Ananthram (Monologue, 1987) explore the concept of the self and the struggle to adapt to changing social circumstances.
1972 - Swayamvaram: Directed by Adoor Gopalakrishnan, the film starred Sharada, Madhu, Thikkurisi Sukumaran Nair, and Gopi. Two lovers elope to the city but life is difficult - they eventually move into a slum. Their love endures as they battle through life. The husband dies, leaving her a destitute widow with a small child. The movie closes with a knock on her door - she looks up. Moving away from the usual perceptions of melodramas, the film states a clear message of collective social responsibility - the couple`s plight is not a punishment for their `misdeeds` and their child deserves better than what the parents underwent. This was Gopalakrishnan`s debut as director.
1977 - Kodiyettam: Directed by Adoor Gopalakrishnan, the film starred Gopi, Lalitha, Thikkurisi Sukumaran Nair, and Adoor Bhawani. A wandering fool whose obvious stupidity seems to overshadow the dismal lives of the villagers. As an assistant to a truck driver, he experiences the world and undergoes many changes. Gopalakrishnan did not idealize poverty - he observed it all with warmth and humour. The film`s soundtrack was unforgettable - the Kathakali drums in particular.
 1984 - Elippathayam: Directed by Adoor Gopalakrishnan, the film starred Karamana Janardanan Nair, Sharda, Jalaja, Rajam K. Nair, and Prakash. The rat trap recurs throughout the film - as the film`s title, a motif, and as the life of the protagonist. - A man lazy and selfish to the extreme, scurrying away like a rat from life and its flow. If it chronicles human decay, the film also presents human fortitude. Gopalakrishnan himself pointed out the autobiographical element in the film - `Elippathayam is probably the closest to me. I have almost reproduced my own family in it.` The film won the British Film Institute Award for its director as the `maker of the most original and imaginative film`.
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