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Guru 1997 film

2022-03-28T02:31:56Z

59.99.40.255:

{{short description|1997 film directed by Rajiv Anchal}}
{{Use Indian English|date=November 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2015}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Guru
| image = GuruMalayalamPoster.jpg
| caption = Poster
| director = [[Rajiv Anchal]]
| producer = Janasammathi Creations
| writer = C. G. Rajendra Babu
| story = Rajiv Anchal
| starring = [[Mohanlal]]
| music = [[Ilaiyaraaja]]
| cinematography = [[S. Kumar (cinematographer)|S. Kumar]]
| editing = [[B. Lenin]]<br />[[V. T. Vijayan]]
| studio = Janasammathi Creations
| distributor = Janasammathi Release
| released = {{Film date|df=yes|1997|9|12}}
| runtime = 160 minutes
| country = India
| language = Malayalam
}}

'''''Guru''''' ({{translation|Teacher / master}}) is a 1997 Indian [[Malayalam]]-language [[Fantasy]] [[Drama (film and television)|Drama]] film directed by [[Rajiv Anchal]] and written by C. G. Rajendra Babu from a story by Rajeev. [[Mohanlal]] plays the lead role, while [[Suresh Gopi]], [[Madhupal]], [[Sithara (actress)|Sithara]], [[Kaveri (actress)|Kaveri]], [[Sreelakshmi]], [[Nedumudi Venu]] and [[Sreenivasan]] appears in supporting roles, and [[Nassar (actor)|Nassar]] in a [[cameo appearance]].

The original musical score and songs were composed by [[Ilaiyaraaja]]. His symphonic [[film score|score]] was conducted and performed by the [[Budapest Symphony Orchestra]], [[Hungary]]. This was the first time in Indian cinema, the background score of a film was recorded completely outside the country. ''Guru'' was selected as [[List of India's official entries to the Oscars|India's official entry to the Oscars]] for the [[Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film|Best Foreign Language Film]] category. ''Guru'' is the first Malayalam film submitted by India for the Oscars.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cscsarchive.org:8081/MediaArchive/art.nsf/(docid)/D4EE2CFD30370A2E652569420028A184|title=Guru goes in search of the Oscar|work=[[The Hindu]]|date=2 November 1997|access-date=15 March 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110725214155/http://www.cscsarchive.org:8081/MediaArchive/art.nsf/(docid)/D4EE2CFD30370A2E652569420028A184|archive-date=25 July 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences</ref><ref name="70thSubmissions">{{cite web |title=44 Countries Hoping for Oscar Nominations |publisher=[[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]] |date=24 November 1997 |url=//www.oscars.org/pressreleases/97.11.24.html |access-date=13 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19980213090309/http://www.oscars.org/pressreleases/97.11.24.html |archive-date=13 February 1998 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all }}</ref>

==Plot==

Raghuraman ([[Mohanlal]]) is the son of a local Hindu temple priest in an idyllic village. The people, Hindus and Muslims, live in harmony. When ambitious politicians (NF Varghese) goons, disguised as Muslims, cause trouble at the local temple, tensions break out between the two communities leading to widespread religious riots. Raghurāman, after his family is killed, joins a Hindu extremist gang to take revenge by attacking a group of Muslims who have taken refuge in a Guru's Ashram (a place where a holy Guru lived and worked). After infiltrating Ashram, he meets Vaidehi who suggests he meditate for a few moments. During meditation, he experiences an altered state of consciousness and perceives being transported into another world.

In this new world, everyone is blind. They believe the sense of sight to be a lie and that is blasphemous to even talk about it. Children are taught from a very young age that sight does not exist. Raghurāman befriends Ramanagan, a man he saves from death. Raghurāman tries to tell them that there is a world of sight and that he can see, but they refuse to believe him and warn him that such talk will get him killed by the king and the elders.

Living with the man, he learns of their daily life and culture. He notices that they have built a world where sight is not required for anything. He observes when a baby is born in the valley, the juice of a special fruit is given to the infant by the midwives immediately. Ramanagan informs Raghuraman this is the fruit of the sacred tree which was given to them by a goddess when the infants of the valley started to die upon being born. Intrigued by this Raghuraman climbs the tree eats the tasty and highly addictive fruit which is called Ilama pazham (Ilama fruit) by the valley people, the seeds of which are extremely poisonous, which is a common delicacy among them. After eating it, he turns blind and helpless. He is captured by the king's soldiers and is ordered to be executed by forcing him to eat the seeds of Ilama pazham, a very rare and cruel punishment.

After the soldiers follow the orders, he is left to die and is surprised when he wakes up hours later having gotten his sight back. He uses his newfound knowledge to spread the truth about their blindness and the cure. He convinces Ramanagan and his family to trust him and eat the seeds and they too gain their eyesight. The news spreads like wildfire and more and more people begin to eat the seeds and follow Raghuraman.

When the king and advisers learn of this, they arrest Raghuraman. The people respond by starting a rebellion. They storm the palace with weapons where Raghuraman begs them not to use violence and that it achieves nothing. At the same time, in the real world, Raghuraman drops his weapon and wakes up. The extremist group begins their assault on the refugees in the Ashram but Raghuraman rushes to save them, irrespective of their religion.

==Cast==
{{colbegin}}
* [[Mohanlal]] as Raghuraman
* [[Suresh Gopi]] as King Vijayanta
* [[Madhupal]] as Ramanagan
* [[Kaveri (actress)|Kaveri]] as Princes Syamantaga
* [[Sithara (actress)|Sithara]] as Vaidehi
* [[Sreelakshmi]] as Sitalakshmi
* [[Sonia (actress)]] as Queen, King Vijayanta's Wife
* [[Charuhasan]] as Raghuraman's father
* [[N. F. Varghese]] as MLA John Kuruvila
* [[Murali (Malayalam actor)|Murali]] as Sahib Abdullah
* [[Sreenivasan]] as Sravanan
* [[Nedumudi Venu]] as Teacher
* [[Captain Raju]] as Old King (King Vijayanta's father)
* [[Reena (actress)|Reena]] as Old Queen (King Vijayanta's mother)
* [[Mohan Raj]] as Senadhipan
* [[Kochu Preman]]
* [[Chandni Shaju]] as Princes Syamantaga's Thozhi
* [[K. B. Ganesh Kumar]]
* [[Shankar (actor)|Shankar]] as Singer ([[cameo appearance]])
* [[Nassar (actor)|Nassar]] as The culprit ([[cameo appearance]])
{{colend}}

==Production==
[[Rajiv Anchal]] cites his influence for the film to [[H. G. Wells]]'s short story ''[[The Country of the Blind]]'', which tells the story of a man who finds himself in a valley of blind men. Anchal first read the book during his college education. He was awestruck by its story and the description of the valley of the blind. He used the Wellsian theme in the film to picturise the human condition, that of "darkness overpowering the soul". Anchal is a disciple of the spiritual leader [[Karunakara Guru]], founder of [[Santhigiri|Santhigiri Ashram]] in [[Pothencode]], [[Thiruvananthapuram]]. The idea for the film came when he met Guru seven years ago (since the release). The film is based on the Guru and tells the message Guru strives to convey to the materialistic world. The fund for the film was raised by 60 of the disciples in the Santhigiri Ashram, including Anchal. The film was made on a production cost of {{INR}}30 million.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Jose|first1=D|title=Blind man's buff|url=http://www.rediff.com/entertai/1998/mar/16guru.htm|work=[[Rediff.com]]|access-date=4 August 2016|date=16 March 1998}}</ref>

==Soundtrack==
The film's soundtrack contains six songs, all composed by [[Ilaiyaraaja]] and lyrics by [[S. Ramesan Nair]]. The orchestration for the film's original songs and [[background score]] were composed and conducted by Ilaiyaraaja, and performed by the [[Budapest Symphony Orchestra]], [[Hungary]].

{{Track listing
| headline = Guru (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
| extra_column = Singer(s)
| all_lyrics =

| title1 = Arunakirana Deepam
| extra1 = [[K. J. Yesudas]], [[Radhika Thilak]]
| length1 = 6:09

| title2 = Devasangeetham Neeyalle
| extra2 = [[K. J. Yesudas]], [[Radhika Thilak]]
| length2 = 6:33

| title3 = Gurucharanam Saranam
| extra3 = [[Lali Anilkumar, G. Venugopal & Chorus]]
| length3 = 5:18

| title4 = Minnaram Maanathu
| extra4 = [[Sujatha Mohan]]
| length4 = 5:09

| title5 = Thatharam
| extra5 = [[M. G. Sreekumar]]
| length5 = 5:34
}}

==Accolades==
''Guru'' was selected as [[List of India's official entries to the Oscars|India's official entry to the Oscars]] for the [[Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film|Best Foreign Language Film]] category for the [[70th Academy Awards]]. ''Guru'' was the first Malayalam film submitted by India for the Oscars.<ref name="70thSubmissions"/>

;[[Screen Awards]]<ref>[http://www.screenindia.com/old/apr17/cover2.htm "And the Winners Are..."]. ''[[Screen India]]''. 17 April 1998. Retrieved 10 April 2011.</ref>
* Best Actor (Malayalam) – [[Mohanlal]]
* Best Cinematography (South) – S. Kumar
* Best Director (Malayalam) – Rajiv Anchal

;[[Kerala State Film Awards]]<ref>{{cite web|title=State Film Awards (1997)|url=http://www.prd.kerala.gov.in/stateawards3.htm|publisher=[[Department of Information and Public Relations (Kerala)|Department of Information and Public Relations]]|access-date=27 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303234157/http://www.prd.kerala.gov.in/stateawards3.htm|archive-date=3 March 2016}}</ref>
*[[Kerala State Film Award for Best Art Director|Best Art Director]] – [[T. Muthuraj]]
*[[Kerala State Film Award for Best Makeup Artist|Best Makeup Artist]] – [[Pattanam Rasheed]]
*[[Kerala State Film Award for Best Costume Designer|Best Costume Designer]] – [[S. B. Satheeshan]]

==See also==
* [[List of submissions to the 70th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film]]
* [[List of Indian submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

== External links ==
* {{IMDb title|0133826|Guru}}

{{Indian submission for Academy Awards}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Guru (1997 Film)}}
[[Category:Indian films]]
[[Category:1997 films]]
[[Category:1990s Malayalam-language films]]
[[Category:Films scored by Ilaiyaraaja]]
[[Category:Indian avant-garde and experimental films]]
[[Category:1990s avant-garde and experimental films]]

Marana Simhasanam

2022-03-28T02:27:54Z

59.99.40.255:

{{short description|1999 film}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2020}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Marana Simhasanam
| image = MaranaSimhasanam.jpg
| caption = Film poster at the Cannes festival
| director = [[Murali Nair]]
| producer = Murali Nair
| writer = Bharathan Njavakkal (dialogue)
| story = Murali Nair
| screenplay = Murali Nair
| starring = Vishwas Njavakkal<br>Lakshmi Raman<br>Sudhas Thayat<br>Jeevan Mitwa
| music = Madhu Apsara
| cinematography = [[M. J. Radhakrishnan]]
| editing = Lalitha Krishna
| distributor =
| released = {{film date|1999|12|15|df=yes}}
| runtime = 57 minutes
| country = India
| language = Malayalam
}}
'''''Marana Simhasanam''''' ({{lang-en|Throne of Death}}, {{lang-fr|Le Trone de la mort}}) is a 1999 Indian [[Malayalam]]-language [[drama film]] written and directed by [[Murali Nair]].<ref name="In real life roles">{{cite web|url=https://frontline.thehindu.com/static/html/fl1616/16161290.htm |title=In real life roles |publisher=Frontline.thehindu.com |date=13 August 1999 |accessdate=26 August 2019}}</ref> Inspired by the first execution by [[electrocution]] in India, the film was screened in the [[Un Certain Regard]] section at the [[1999 Cannes Film Festival]] where it won the [[Caméra d'Or]].<ref name="festival-cannes.com">{{cite web |url=http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/archives/ficheFilm/id/5370/year/1999.html |title=Festival de Cannes: Throne of Death |accessdate=10 October 2009|work=festival-cannes.com}}</ref><ref name="rediff">{{cite web|url=https://m.rediff.com/movies/1999/jul/08mur.htm |title=Rediff On The NeT, Movies: An interview with Murali Nair |publisher=M.rediff.com |date=8 July 1999 |accessdate=26 August 2019}}</ref> The film received special reception at the [[British Film Institute]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b82b6db57 |title=Marana Simhasanam (1999) |publisher=BFI |date= |accessdate=26 August 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=site admin |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/society-the-arts/films/story/19990607-london-based-indian-filmmaker-murali-nair-wins-coveted-best-first-film-award-at-cannes-781050-1999-06-07 |title=Golden windfall - Society & The Arts News - Issue Date: Jun 7, 1999 |publisher=Indiatoday.in |date=7 June 1999 |accessdate=26 August 2019}}</ref> The film received positive reviews from ''[[Le Monde]]'' for its unusual theme. The film was screened in [[Vienna]], [[Torino]], [[Toronto]], [[Pusan]], [[La Rochelle]], Midnight Sun Film Festival Lapland, and the [[American Film Institute]]'s Film Festival.<ref name="rediff"/>

==Plot==
Krishnan is an out-of-work seasonal farmer who is driven to steal coconuts from his landlord to support his family. When he is caught and imprisoned, he is shocked to learn that he has been charged with the murder of a man who has been missing from the island for many years. But since it was an election time, and the most popular platform for politicians had become capital punishment, Krishnan is sentenced to death in the country's newest technology - electrocution by electric chair funded by the World bank. He is promised a statue being erected in his honour.

==Cast==
* Vishwas Njavakkal
* Lakshmi Raman
* Suhas Thayat
* Jeevan Mitva

==Production==
The film was shot entirely by amateur team on location near the Manjanikkadu islet in [[Vypin]], a small island off the coast of [[Njarakkal]] in [[Kerala]], India. Except the female lead, all characters were portrayed by the locals in the village, including a widowed basket weaver who responded to a casting advertisement in the Malayalam daily Mathrubhoomi.<ref name="In real life roles"/>

==Accolades==
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable"
|-
! scope="col" | Ceremony
! scope="col" | Award
! scope="col" | Result
! scope="col" class="unsortable" style="text-align:center;" | {{tooltip|Ref.|Reference}}
|-
|style="text-align:center;" | [[1999 Cannes Film Festival]]
|Caméra d'Or
|{{won}}
|<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/festival/films/marana-simhasanam|title=MARANA SIMHASANAM|website=Festival de Cannes}}</ref>
|-
|-
|style="text-align:center;" | 2000 [[Cinema of Spain|Festival international du Film Cinema Jove de Valence]]
|Special Mention - Feature Film
|{{won}}
|
|-
|style="text-align:center;" |1999 [[Torino Film Festival]]
|Best Feature Film
|{{won}}
|
|-
|style="text-align:center;" |[[Dolby Theatre|Kodak Theatre]]
|Kodak Prize
|{{won}}
|<ref>{{cite web|url=https://rediff.com/movies/1999/jul/08mur.htm |title=Rediff On The NeT, Movies: An interview with Murali Nair |publisher=M.rediff.com |date=1999-07-08 |accessdate=2019-08-26}}</ref>
|-
|style="text-align:center;" |1999 [[Busan International Film Festival]]
|New Currents Award
|{{nom}}
|<ref name="rediff"/>
|-
|style="text-align:center;" |1999 [[International Film Festival of Kerala]]
|The Golden Crow Pheasant Award
|{{nom}}
|<ref name="rediff"/>
|}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb title|0200838|Marana Simhasanam}}

{{Caméra d'Or|state=collapsed}}

[[Category:1999 films]]
[[Category:1999 drama films]]
[[Category:Indian films]]
[[Category:Films about discrimination]]
[[Category:Films about prejudice]]
[[Category:Films about abuse]]
[[Category:Caméra d'Or winners]]
[[Category:Films about capital punishment]]
[[Category:Indian drama films]]
[[Category:Films about death]]
[[Category:Works about law enforcement]]
[[Category:Fictional portrayals of the Kerala Police]]
[[Category:Films shot in Kochi]]
[[Category:Films about social issues in India]]
[[Category:Films about poverty in India]]
[[Category:1990s Malayalam-language films]]
[[Category:Films directed by Murali Nair]]
[[Category:Films about corruption in India]]