Malayalam films bounce back, TV serials dwindle

The Malayalam cinema seems to be bouncing back, pulling crowds to theatres. The filmdom, which appeared to be teetering on the brink of a total collapse, appears to be making a miraculous comeback with a bang.

If it was the cinema's loss that was the tele-serials' gain till recently, the current trend is the other way round. Much like the cinema in the past few years, the hitherto flourishing tele-serial industry has now suddenly run into the crisis mode.

Even as several Malayalam films released for the Vishu-Easter season are running house-full, many serial projects that began with much hype have been wound up half-way.

The state capital itself was the most favoured venue for serial shooting. Till recently about 20 serials were being produced here at the same time but now the figure has dwindled sharply. The 40-odd studios in the city complete with multiple editing and dubbing suites are struggling to find enough work for sustenance.

Unending serials that used to be the major attraction for viewers of the mushrooming TV channels, especially women, are no longer so. They have given way to other short and gripping comic programmes or other forms of entertainment.

Observers say that people's disenchantment with dragging serials has driven the viewers to films like those just released in this festival season. They say that filmdom is mending its ways discarding the masala formula and going in for refreshing stories.

The latest crowd-pullers infusing a feel-good factor in the filmdom include three-dimensional Magic Magic, Kilichundan Mambazham, Kasthooriman, Thilakkam, Appoonte Veedu, Enteyum and Chronic Bachelor. Brahmachari of Mohanlal, a pre-festival season release is also doing well.

Super stars of Malayalam including Mohanlal, Mammootty and Jayaram figure in some of these films. Magic Magic has special appeal for children.

Observers say that recent releases Nammal and Nandanam, which had no super stars, drew the crowd back to the theatres, overshadowing the lingering disputes among various film organisations.

The stars and producers and technicians and exhibitors had fallen apart. The scene was marked by a rash of battles of words, slur wars, bans, sanctions and court cases.

The observers attribute the silver-lining on the Malyalam silver screen to moves to put the house in order by streamlining production, avoiding wasteful expenditure and choosing innovative stories and scripts.

The miraculous filmy resurrection occurs at a time when people are left wondering if Kerala's tinsel glamour is fast vanishing. Producers were going bankrupt and the number of releases had come down by half. Consequently, deserted theatres were being turned into supermarkets or wedding halls by their owners for survival.

A major chunk of the more than 1,300 theatres in the state were facing threat of closure with super-stars failing to draw crowds.

In 2002, only four out of the nearly 90 odd releases made profits. Perhaps the only 'super star' on the horizon was the oomph girl Shakeela, who ensured hits and made as many as her 20 producers laugh all their way to the bank.

Some factors like lack of planning that drove filmdom into the red are afflicting the serial scene too. Most projects begin with no complete script or shooting schedule and the result is an unprofessional abrupt end and consequent falling viewership.

A few years ago, at least one out of 10 persons in the city streets used to claim that they were working for one serial or the other. Most of them might have been unemployed but then the serial scene had the glamour in which they were longing to get involved.

Today, even those who really work for tele-serials are chary of admitting it, for it is no longer a credit to do so. More so, when it comes to the matrimonial market.