{"id":262,"date":"2023-04-16T11:22:45","date_gmt":"2023-04-16T15:22:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/polandinepatti.totallyfilmi.com\/polandinepatti-wp\/?p=262"},"modified":"2023-06-06T19:57:14","modified_gmt":"2023-06-06T23:57:14","slug":"polandine-patti-episode-17","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/polandinepatti.totallyfilmi.com\/polandinepatti-wp\/2023\/04\/16\/polandine-patti-episode-17\/","title":{"rendered":"Polandine Patti Episode 17"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Episode 17 sees us continue our journey with Malayalam supernatural films — in this episode, we look at Anandabhadram<\/strong> and Akam<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Download Episode 17<\/a> (Right-click and ‘Copy Link’, then paste into your podcast app’s ‘Subscribe to feed’ field)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Episode 17 Highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spoiler Alert! We try to remember to alert listeners to spoilers, but just in case, know that we talk about the films in-depth, so be sure to watch them first if you\u2019re concerned about spoilers!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:00:15] A discussion about Prithviraj\u2019s comedy skills leads into our first film for the episode, Anandabhadram<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:00:44] SPOILER ALERT!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:01:7] Anandabhadram<\/strong> is a Santhosh Sivan-directed supernatural film from 2005<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:01:41] Prithviraj plays a young man whose mother elopes from her ancestral village to marry the man she loves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:02:04] She tells her son before she dies that she wants her ashes scattered in her village.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:02:29] He meets his mother\u2019s family who practice snake worship and their enemies who practice black magic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:03:00] Katherine points out the black magician wants to gain immortality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:03:30] There\u2019s an ayurvedic cryopreservation chamber.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:04:01] Harsha is very confused about the plot and Katherine tries to make it make sense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:04:48] Manoj K. Jayan has a magic toe!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:05:35] It\u2019s very obvious this is a Santosh Sivan film with beautiful cinematography, songs and production design<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:06:19] The actors in Pinakkamano were made up to evoke oil paint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:06:45] Santhosh Sivan cinematography is known for using reflective surfaces like mirrors and water, which if found throughout Anandabhadram<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:07:07] The film draws from both Raja Ravi Varma painting and the Kalari martial art, which takes center stage in Santhosh Sivan\u2019s 2011 film Urumi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:07:50] Harsha found the tharavadu setting and the NRI who falls in love with his cousin antiquated even for 2005.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:08:32] Prithviraj plays the same character as he does in Nandanam and Harsha found him awkward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:09:21] He does a better job when he has to depict being possessed because he is better at menacing roles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:10:35] The filmmakers didn\u2019t want to commit to the darkness of its subject.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:11:27] Riya Sen is only in the film to be objectified and it makes us uncomfortable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:12:40] Katherine appreciates that Anandabhadram<\/strong> made her look up a lot of Kerala supernatural folklore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:13:02] Revathy plays Prithviraj\u2019s mother and she looks beautiful in her cameo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:13:38] A lot of supernatural elements get brought up in different parts of the film and then dropped, making the rules of the magical world seem incoherent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:14:05] Other films in this series had consistent parameters to the supernatural, which this does not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:14:55] Biju Menon shows up as a seemingly important character and is unceremoniously killed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:15:45] Is Digambaran\u2019s (Manoj K. Jayan) kryptonite sex or the magic toe?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:16:37] There\u2019s a seed of a great story here that never comes to fruition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:16:50] Could Riya Sen\u2019s Bhama and Kavya Madhavan\u2019s Bhadra have at some point been one role?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:17:09] Meera Jasmine was set to play the Bhadra role at one point and she might have been more comfortable with the risqu\u00e9 scenes Bhama ended up in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:17:55] We don\u2019t understand!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:18:18] We don\u2019t like Kavya Madhavan for reasons on this podcast but she looks beautiful in the film.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:18:53] The importance of traditional stories passed down through generations are once again highlighted in the film, like in Manichitrathazhu.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:19:30] The tension between and coexistence of modern science and traditional practices is another theme, like in Sarppakavu<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:21:21] Next, we talk about Akam<\/strong>, directed by Shalini Usha Nair, based on the novel Yakshi by Malayattoor Ramakrishnan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:21:52] The film was shot circa 2011 and stars Fahad Fazil and Anumol. This is very early in his career.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:22:14] FaFa plays a young urban man disabled by an accident. His partner leaves him and he becomes depressed. He meets a young woman and marries her but begins to suspect she is trying to kill him because she\u2019s a yakshi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:23:51] Yakshis are something between a female ghost and a vampire and are said to lure men to murder them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:25:38] Many cultures have stories about the danger of alluring women and their sexuality like the nine-tailed fox.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:26:24] Katherine wonders where she can find more yakshi stories. We will discuss some in upcoming episodes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:28:02] Katherine didn\u2019t realize Manichitrathazhu<\/strong> is a yakshi movie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:29:11] Bulbbul<\/strong> is another yakshi\/chudail film.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:32:30] We found Akam<\/strong> quite impenetrable because of its minimalism and limited characterization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:33:21] Malayalam movies are strongest when characters are placed in the context of their larger society.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:33:37] We understand the isolation of the characters is intentional as it adds to the feeling of paranoia experienced by Fahad\u2019s character, Srini.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:34:30] The main characters\u2019 marriage seem to come out of nowhere in the story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:35:24] Srini\u2019s paranoia is partly a result of the rushed marriage and the things he does not know about his wife.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:35:49] Harsha thinks Anumol is a great fit for a yakshi because of her frostiness on screen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:36:22] The plot has a lot of gaps and leaps, and while it may be intentional, you still have to give your audience something to grab onto so they get through the film.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:36:42] We love the John Everett Millais\u2019 Ophelia-inspired ending and it makes the message of the film explicit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:37:55] Because of the dreamlike quality of the film, it\u2019s never clear what is in Srini\u2019s disturbed imagination and what was real.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:38:32] The director\u2019s intentional choices, like the use of yellow to represent deception, make us wish she kept a firmer grip on the rest of the film.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:39:18] The novel itself is surprisingly urban and is ripe for another adaptation from a less minimalist director.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:40:30] Harsha really did not like the facial scarring make up on Fahad and thinks it did nothing to show his physical pain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:40:49] The casting on this film was done by Geethu Mohandas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:41:20] Harsha thinks Anumol is very underappreciated. She\u2019s been doing a lot of work but most of them fly under-the-radar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:43:33] Aashiq Abu\u2019s upcoming Neelavelicham<\/strong> is a yakshi film.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:43:59] Bally Sagoo\u2019s music video Noorie also centers a yakshi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:45:17] We are here to learn (about yakshis and other stuff).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[00:45:30] Next episode, we will talk about Ennu Swantham Janakikutty,<\/strong> Mayilpeelikkavu<\/strong> and Bhoothakaalam.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Subscribe to our feed here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can also listen to the podcast on YouTube!<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can connect with us on Twitter: @PolandinePatti<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mail your queries and comments to polandinepatti@gmail.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Episode 17 sees us continue our journey with Malayalam supernatural films — in this episode, we look at Anandabhadram and Akam. Download Episode 17 (Right-click and ‘Copy Link’, then paste into your podcast app’s ‘Subscribe to feed’ field) Episode 17 Highlights: Spoiler Alert! We try to remember to alert listeners to…<\/p>\n

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