View source for G. Aravindan

{{short description|Indian film director}}
{{EngvarB|date=September 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2020}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = G. Aravindan
| image              = Aravindan.JPG
| imagesize          = 
| caption            = 
| birth_name         = Govindan Aravindan
| birth_date         = {{Birth date|df=yes|1935|1|23}}
| birth_place        = [[Kottayam]], [[Travancore]]
| death_date         = {{Death date and age|df=yes|1991|3|15|1935|1|21}}
| death_place        = [[Trivandrum]], [[Kerala]], India
| restingplace       = 
| restingplacecoordinates = 
| othername          = 
| occupation         = Director, screenwriter, musician, [[cartoonist]], painter, Rubber Board officer
| years_active       = 1974 – 1991 (in film)
| spouse             = Kaumudi Aravindan
| partner            = 
| children           = Ramu Aravindan
| parents            = M. N. Govindan Nair, P. G. Thankamma
| influences         = 
| influenced         = 
| website            = 
}}

'''Govindan Aravindan''' (23 January 1935&nbsp;– 15 March 1991) was an Indian [[film director]], [[screenwriter]], musician, cartoonist, and painter.<ref>Obituary ''[[Variety Obituaries|Variety]]'', 25 March 1991.</ref> He was one of the pioneers of [[parallel cinema]] in [[Malayalam]] and is considered one of the greatest filmmakers in India.<ref>Srikanth Srinivasan (12 October 2013). [http://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/cinema-columns/outtakes-g-aravindan/article5228640.ece/ "Outtakes: G. Aravindan"]. ''The Hindu''. Retrieved 21 February 2015.</ref> He was known for his unorthodox way of filmmaking; he changed his cinematic forms consistently<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20060914000636/http://www.hindu.com/2006/03/17/stories/2006031700450200.htm The Hindu: Remembering Aravindan]</ref> and experimented in storytelling without regular narrative styles.<ref name="cinemaofmalayalam.net">[http://www.cinemaofmalayalam.net/aravindan.html cinemaofmalayalam.net: G. Aravindan profile]</ref> He studied at [[University College Trivandrum|University College]], [[Trivandrum]]. Before venturing into the film field, he was an established cartoonist. He had also worked with documentaries and theatre. He also occasionally directed music for other filmmakers. The [[Government of India]] awarded him the fourth highest civilian award of [[Padma Shri]] in 1990.<ref name="Padma Awards">{{cite web |url=http://mha.nic.in/sites/upload_files/mha/files/LST-PDAWD-2013.pdf |title=Padma Awards |publisher=Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India |date=2015 |access-date=21 July 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151015193758/http://mha.nic.in/sites/upload_files/mha/files/LST-PDAWD-2013.pdf |archive-date=15 October 2015  }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Aravindan: Anew and again |url=https://frontline.thehindu.com/columns/Sashi_Kumar/aravindan-anew-and-again/article8399208.ece |access-date=30 July 2019 |work=[[Frontline (magazine)|Frontline]] |date=15 April 2016}}</ref>

==Biography==
G. Aravindan was the son of comedy writer M. N. Govindan Nair.<ref name="Weblokam profile">{{Cite web |url=http://www.weblokam.com/cinema/profiles/2002/03/aravindhan.htm |title=Weblokam profile |access-date=3 December 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080126213303/http://www.weblokam.com/cinema/profiles/2002/03/aravindhan.htm |archive-date=26 January 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Aravindan started his professional life as a cartoonist for the journal ''[[Mathrubhumi]]''. He established himself as a cartoonist in the early 1960s with his cartoon series ''[[Cheriya Manushyarum Valiya Lokavum]]''<ref name="ebook">{{Cite web |url=http://www.mathrubhumi.com/books/ebook/aravindan/ |title=Archived copy |access-date=19 January 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110119201021/http://www.mathrubhumi.com/books/ebook/aravindan/ |archive-date=19 January 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> which dealt with the social encounters of its central characters, Ramu and Guruji, mingled with political and social satire.<ref name="cinemaofmalayalam.net"/> After that series ended in 1973, he drew cartoons for other journals but these were very sporadic. At one point, Aravindan diverted his attention to theatre and music. He played a major role in establishing theatre and music clubs Navarangam and Sopanam. He became associated with eminent theatre figure [[Kavalam Narayana Panicker]] which accelerated his activities in the field of professional play. They created several plays like ''Kaali'' and ''[[Avanavan Kadamba]]''.<ref name="Weblokam profile"/> Aravindan was working as an officer in revenue board when he got associated with artist Devan, playwright Thikkodiyan and writer Pattathuvila Karunakaran. The early works of Aravindan were influenced by the group; for example, the spiritualism factor which can be seen in his early works can be attributed to satirist [[Sanjayan]] and mystic paintings of [[K. C. S. Paniker]].<ref name="cinemaofmalayalam.net"/>

The first film directed by Aravindan, ''[[Uttarayanam]]'' (1974), came out as a product from this group; the film was produced by Karunakaran and the story was written by [[Thikkodiyan]]. The film, which exposes opportunism and hypocrisy set against the backdrop of the Independence struggle, was inspired by Aravindan's own cartoon series ''Cheriya Lokavum Valiya Manushyarum (Small World and Big People)''. The film is about Ravi, an unemployed young man, who has to face a series of encounters during his search for a job. Ravi reflects on the past struggles of the anti-British freedom fighters he has learned about from his paralyzed father. He eventually meets Gopalan Muthalaly, a leader of [[Quit India]] movement, but now a corrupt contractor.<ref name="details">{{cite book
 |author=Directorate of Film Festivals
 |author-link=Directorate of Film Festivals
 |title=The New generation, 1960-1980
 |publisher=Directorate of Film Festivals, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting
 |year=1981
 |page=48
 }}</ref> The film garnered wide critical praise and several awards, including five [[Kerala State Film Awards]] upon release.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cinemaofmalayalam.net/uttarayanam.html|title=G. Aravindan: Uttarayanam|publisher=Cinemafmalayalam.net|access-date=20 January 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101212224655/http://www.cinemaofmalayalam.net/uttarayanam.html|archive-date=12 December 2010|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Aravindan's second film ''[[Kanchana Sita]]'' (1972) was an adaptation of [[C. N. Sreekantan Nair]]'s [[Kanchana Sita (play)|play of the same name]], which is a reworking of [[Valmiki]]'s ''[[Ramayana]]''. The film is credited with formation of a new stream called [[independent filmmaking]] in Malayalam.<ref name="Weblokam profile"/> It interprets a story from the ''Uttara Kanda'' of the [[Indian epic poetry|epic poem]], where [[Rama]] sends his wife, [[Sita]], to the jungle to satisfy his subjects. Director Aravindan interweaves the ''[[Samkhya]]''-''[[Yoga]]'' philosophical concepts of ''[[Prakriti]]''-''[[Purusha]]'' bonds throughout the film. The film, told in a feminist perspective, significantly differs from all other adaptations of ''Ramayana'' in the characterisation of the central characters, including Rama and Lakshmana. The characters are humanised, contrary to the way divine characters from Indian mythology are usually depicted in visual media. The film was shot in the interior tribal areas of [[Andhra Pradesh]] and the roles of the epic heroes are played by [[Chenchu|Rama Chenchu]] tribal people (or Koyas), who claim lineage to the mythological Rama. Upper-class Hindu groups accused of Aravindan of blasphemy for casting tribals in the role of Hindu epic heroes but Aravindan never heeded saying that the Rama Chenchus have classical features and are marvellous actors.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cscsarchive.org:8081/MediaArchive/art.nsf/94ff8a4a35a9b8876525698d002642a9/c7693440bca3c3d7652572d000265e53/$FILE/A0190092.pdf|title=Aravindan, film-maker of poetic vision, dead|author=Khalid Mohamed|date=16 March 1991|access-date=20 July 2011|work=[[The Times of India]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110725213426/http://www.cscsarchive.org:8081/MediaArchive/art.nsf/94ff8a4a35a9b8876525698d002642a9/c7693440bca3c3d7652572d000265e53/$FILE/A0190092.pdf|archive-date=25 July 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref>

While ''Kanchana Sita'' dealt with mythology, Aravindan's next film ''[[Thampu]]'' (1978) dealt with realism and told the story of suffering in a circus troupe. It was shot in black and white in a direct documentary mode. Aravindan won the award for Best Director at both [[National Film Award for Best Direction|National Film Awards]] and [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Director|Kerala State Film Awards]].

His 1979 films ''[[Kummatty]]'' and ''[[Esthappan]]'' also ran through different streams. ''Kummatty'' is a Pied Piper-like figment of Malabar's folklore about a partly mythic and partly real magician called Kummatty (bogeyman) while ''Esthappan'' blends together the Biblical story of the deeds of Christ and the way society responded to him, with the life of Esthappan, whose life mystified others. Indefinability of the human mind was the theme of his next film ''[[Pokkuveyil]]'' (1981). The music for this film was composed by flautist [[Hariprasad Chaurasia]]. The legend is that visuals of this film were composed according to musical notations, without any script. The protagonist of the film is a young artist who lives with his father, a radical friend, a sportsman and a music-loving young woman. His world collapses when his father dies, the radical friend leaves him, the sportsman friend gets injured in an accident and has to give up sports and her family takes the woman away to another city. The lead role was played by poet [[Balachandran Chullikkadu]].

His next film ''[[Chidambaram (film)|Chidambaram]]'' came after a gap of four years. The 1985 film was an adaptation of a short story by [[C. V. Sreeraman]] and was produced by Aravindan under the banner ''Suryakanthi''. The film explores various aspects of relations between men and women through the lives of three people living in a cattle farm in the hilly areas on the border of [[Kerala]] and [[Tamil Nadu]]. Themes of guilt and redemption are also dealt with. Unlike earlier films directed by Aravindan, Chidambaram featured a cast consisting of many popular actors: [[Bharath Gopi]], [[Smita Patil]], [[Sreenivasan (actor)|Sreenivasan]] and Mohandas play the lead roles.

In 1986 ''[[Oridathu]]'' can be seen as a continuation of Aravindan's earlier film ''Thampu'' and his cartoon series ''Cheriya Manushyarum Valiya Lokavum (The Small Man and the Big World)''. The story is about the problems faced by the people of a hamlet with no electricity, when electric supply finally reaches them.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.iffi.nic.in/retroarvind.pdf |title=IFFI Aravindan Retrospective |access-date=3 December 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071009123227/http://www.iffi.nic.in/retroarvind.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The film reaches a conclusion that life is better without electricity. Though the film is discussing a serious issue, the treatment of it is very simplistic. Humour and intensity characterise the film that is set in the mid-fifties. The film is different from many of Aravindan's earlier works in that it deals with a broad range of characters and lacks a clear-cut linear story. The theme of ''Oridathu'' demanded a caricature treatment so Aravindan made it that way. When asked about this deviation, Aravindan stated, "There is an element of caricature in all the characters. A little exaggeration and lot of humour was consciously introduced to make effective the last sequence, which is the explosion. In fact the whole film moves towards the climax — the clash on the day of the festival and the breaking out of the fire." The film is complex in that it has many characters and many incidents and therefore does not have a single motif. Hence, Aravindan had to use a number of shots in the film. The usual type of music is also absent. Instead, the sounds of the incidents are used to the maximum. In the film, different characters speak different dialects of Malayalam, for example the villagers speak pure Valluvanadan Malayalam of South Malabar, the overseer uses the Trivandrum Malayalam the fake Doctor uses Travancore Malayalam etc.<ref>Jayaram, S. B. (1992). Aravindan and his films. Chalachitra. pp. 1–36.</ref>

In this period Aravindan did a number of documentaries and short films. He composed music for films like ''[[Aaro Oral]]'', ''[[Piravi]]'' and ''[[Ore Thooval Pakshikal]]''. Aravindan's 1989 feature film ''[[Unni (film)|Unni]]'' was an international co-production loosely based on experiences in Kerala of a group of American students, who played themselves. Aravindan's final project ''[[Vasthuhara]]'' (1991) about refugees in [[Bengal]] was based on [[C. V. Sreeraman|C. V. Sreeraman's]] short story in the same name. The film had [[Mohanlal]] and [[Neena Gupta]] in major roles.

Aravindan died on 15 March 1991, before the release of ''Vasthuhara''. He was aged just 56 when he died.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cscsarchive.org:8081/MediaArchive/art.nsf/94ff8a4a35a9b8876525698d002642a9/c7693440bca3c3d7652572d000265e53/$FILE/A0190092.pdf|title=Aravindan, film-maker of poetic vision, dead|work=[[The Times of India]]|publisher=cscsarchive.org|date=17 March 1991|access-date=15 March 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110725213426/http://www.cscsarchive.org:8081/MediaArchive/art.nsf/94ff8a4a35a9b8876525698d002642a9/c7693440bca3c3d7652572d000265e53/$FILE/A0190092.pdf|archive-date=25 July 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Kerala Chalachitra Film Society facilitates ''[[Aravindan Puraskaram]]'' every year in the memory of G. Aravindan for the best debutant director in Indian languages.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Kerala film society to remember iconic director G Aravindan|url=https://english.mathrubhumi.com/movies-music/movie-news/kerala-film-society-to-remember-iconic-director-g-aravindan-1.3633794|access-date=2020-08-17|website=Mathrubhumi|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Malayalam director Zakariya wins Aravindan Award for 'Sudani from Nigeria'|url=https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/malayalam-director-zakariya-wins-aravindan-award-sudani-nigeria-97392|access-date=2020-08-17|website=www.thenewsminute.com}}</ref>

==Awards==
===Civilian awards===
* [[Padma Shri]]

===National Film Awards===
* 1974: Award for the Best Feature Film on the 25th Anniversary of India's Independence – ''[[Uttarayanam]]''
* 1974: [[National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Malayalam|Best Feature Film in Malayalam]] – ''[[Uttarayanam]]''
* 1978: [[National Film Award for Best Direction|Best Direction]] – ''[[Kanchana Sita]]''
* 1979: [[National Film Award for Best Direction|Best Direction]] – ''[[Thampu]]''
* 1986: [[National Film Award for Best Feature Film|Best Film]] – ''[[Chidambaram (film)|Chidambaram]]''
* 1987: [[National Film Award for Best Direction|Best Direction]] – ''[[Oridathu]]''
* 1991: [[National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Malayalam|Best Feature Film in Malayalam]] – ''[[Vasthuhara]]''

===Kerala State Film Awards===
* 1974: [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Film|Best Film]] – ''[[Uttarayanam]]''
* 1974: [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Director|Best Director]] – ''[[Uttarayanam]]''
* 1974: [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Screenplay|Best Screenplay]] – ''[[Uttarayanam]]''
* 1978: [[Kerala State Film Award for Second Best Film|Second Best Film]] – ''[[Thampu]]''
* 1978: [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Director|Best Director]] – ''[[Thampu]]''
* 1979: [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Film|Best Film]] – ''[[Esthappan]]''
* 1979: [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Children's Film|Best Children's Film]] – ''[[Kummatty]]''
* 1979: [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Director|Best Director]] – ''[[Esthappan]]''
* 1981: [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Director|Best Director]] – ''[[Pokkuveyil]]''
* 1985: [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Film|Best Film]] – ''[[Chidambaram (film)|Chidambaram]]''
* 1985: [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Director|Best Director]] – ''[[Chidambaram (film)|Chidambaram]]''
* 1985: [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Documentary|Best Documentary]] – ''The Brown Landscape''
* 1986: [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Film|Best Film]] – ''[[Oridathu]]''
* 1986: [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Director|Best Director]] – ''[[Oridathu]]''
* 1986: [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Documentary|Best Documentary]] – ''The Catch''
* 1988: [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Music Director|Best Music Director]] – ''Ore Thooval Pakshikal''
* 1990: [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Film|Best Film]] – ''[[Vasthuhara]]''
* 1990: [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Director|Best Director]] – ''[[Vasthuhara]]''

==Filmography==

===Direction===
{| class="wikitable" style="width:100%;"
|-
! Year !! Title !! English Title !! Writer !! Type
|-
|| 1974
|| ''[[Uttarayanam]]''
|| ''Throne of Capricorn''
| {{Yes}}
|| Feature film
|-
|| 1977
|| ''[[Kanchana Sita]]''
|| ''The Golden Substitute''
|| 
|| Feature film
|-
|| 1978
|| ''[[Thampu]]''
|| ''The Circus Tent''
|| 
|| Feature film
|-
|| 1979
|| ''[[Kummatty]]''
|| ''The Bogeyman''
|| 
|| Feature film
|-
|| 1980
|| ''[[Esthappan]]''
|| ''Stephen''
| {{Yes}}*
|| Feature film
|-
|| 1981
|| ''[[Pokkuveyil]]''
|| ''Twilight''
| {{Yes}}
|| Feature film
|-
|| 1985
|| ''VT''
|| V.T. Bhattathiripad
|| 
|| Documentary film
|-
|| 1985
|| ''The Seer Who Walks Alone''
|| ---
|| 
|| Documentary film
|-
|| 1985
|| ''[[Chidambaram (film)|Chidambaram]]''
|| ---
| {{Yes}}
|| Feature film
|-
|| 1985
|| ''The Brown Landscape''
|| ---
|| 
|| Short film
|-
|| 1986
|| ''The Catch''
|| ---
|| 
|| Documentary film
|-
|| 1986
|| ''[[Oridathu]]''
|| ''At a Place''
| {{Yes}}
|| Feature film
|-
|| 1987
|| ''Contours of Linear Rhythm''
|| ---
|| 
|| Documentary film
|-
|| 1988
|| ''[[Marattam]]''
|| ''Masquerade''
| {{Yes}}
|| Television film
|-
|| 1988
|| ''Anadi-Dhara''
|| ---
|| 
|| Documentary film
|-
|| 1989
|| ''[[Unni (film)|Unni]]''
|| ---
|| 
|| Feature film
|-
|| 1990
|| ''Sahaja''
|| ''Spontaneous''
|| 
|| Short film
|-
|| 1991
|| ''[[Vasthuhara]]''
|| ''The Dispossessed'' 
| {{Yes}}*
|| Feature film
|}

==== Notes====
* He also wrote the story of ''Esthappan'' and dialogues for ''Vasthuhara.''

===Other contributions===
{| class="wikitable" style="width:100%;"
|-
! Year !! Title !! Director !! Role
|-
|| 1978
|| ''[[Aaro Oral]]''
|| [[V. K. Pavithran]]
|| Composer
|-
|| 1980
|| ''[[Esthappan]]''
|| Himself
|| Composer, editor
|-
|| 1988
|| ''[[Piravi]]''
|| [[Shaji N. Karun]]
|| Composer
|-
|| 1989
|| ''[[Ore Thooval Pakshikal]]''<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/466080|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110809094838/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/466080|url-status=dead|archive-date=9 August 2011|title=Ore Thooval Pakshikal|publisher=[[British Film Institute]] |access-date=21 January 2011}}</ref>
|| K. Ravindran
|| Composer
|}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*{{IMDb name|id=0033244}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20130604084648/http://www.mathrubhumi.com/books/article/memories/2303/ Aravindan] (Memoir by [[Chintha Ravi]] published in 1991) (in Malayalam)
*[https://www.sahapedia.org/g-aravindan-the-malayalam-film-maker G. Aravindan]—Sahapedia article by V.K. Cherian
*[https://www.sahapedia.org/aravindan-%E2%80%93-scriptless-creative-film-director Aravindan]—Sahapedia essay by Sasikumar Vasudevan

{{Padma Shri Award Recipients in Art}}
{{G. Aravindan}}
{{Cartoonists from Kerala}}
{{NationalFilmAwardBestDirection}}
{{Padma Award winners of Kerala}}
{{Kerala State Film Award for Best Director}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aravindan, G}}
[[Category:1935 births]]
[[Category:1991 deaths]]
[[Category:Indian cartoonists]]
[[Category:Musicians from Kottayam]]
[[Category:Artists from Kottayam]]
[[Category:Malayalam film directors]]
[[Category:Kerala State Film Award winners]]
[[Category:University College Thiruvananthapuram alumni]]
[[Category:Indian documentary filmmakers]]
[[Category:Best Director National Film Award winners]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Padma Shri in arts]]
[[Category:Painters from Kerala]]
[[Category:Screenwriters from Kerala]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian film directors]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian musicians]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian painters]]
[[Category:Film directors from Kerala]]
[[Category:Malayalam screenwriters]]
[[Category:Producers who won the Best Feature Film National Film Award]]
[[Category:Directors who won the Best Feature Film National Film Award]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian screenwriters]]