Malayalam film retro: 'Avalude Ravukal' was more than a bold movie

Malayalam cinema has never shied away from creating exceptionally intense women characters – those who are able to stand their ground even when hit by the worst of circumstances. And who are not defined by the men in their lives.

A young Manju Warrier as Bhanu in Kanmadam was searing in her portrayal of someone who had to take on the responsibilities of her family and not succumb to emotions when a stranger – Mohanlal as Vishwanathan – comes to her village.

And what about Reema Kalingal as Tessa in 22 Female Kottayam, who starts off as an impressionable newcomer to a big city and then gets caught up in a whirlpool of deceit. How she plots a turnaround to her life is what the movie is all about, and leading up to a most wickedly exciting conclusion as she gets her revenge.

There are more, much more of such Malayalam films where women have a voice and beliefs, and unafraid to express them.

But I will go back to 1978 and the I.V. Sasi directed Avalude Ravukal for what has to be one of the most defining roles ever written where the woman is front and center. Seema – who was just getting started in her career – gets to play Raji, a sex worker in the lower rungs of society and the sole earner in her family.

Now, Avalude Ravukal has always been an era-defining Malayalam film primarily for the boldness of the subject matter. But to me, it was also about how Seema portrayed Raji, and in the way she never lets the sheer drudgery of her profession get in the way of whatever she can get out of life. She takes on the deep hurts and insults society casually throws at her.

There are the men in her life – those who objectify her and the rare ones who are willing to share something far deeper – the bond of love. Again, the character has to go through loss, but each time Seema brings on a nonchalance to how life and men treat her, with nothing more than a grimace and pursing of the lips. And the occasional tears, when loss can no longer be internalized.   

It’s acting at its most elemental, with no frills and none of the heavy dialogues that characters in such roles usually sprout.

My only regret is that the ending in the film seems such a rush job, where they had to create a happy ending and have Seema’s Raji get accepted as a bride in a typical Malayalee household. Sure, there’s nothing like a happy ending and everyone living happily ever after – but all that it does is strike a jarring note.

But forget all about endings and just go with the rest of Avalude Ravukal has to offer. And take pride that in the late 1970s a movie could be made that breaks all the norms of showing the life of a sex worker in an Indian city. And in turn crafting one of the most enduring characters in all the decades that Malayalam cinema has passed through.

In ‘Avalude Ravukal’, Seema’s supreme…