Country: India | Language: Tamil | Director: John Abraham | Year: 1977
Starring : MB Sreenivasan, Swathi, Veera Raghavan
Recently I stumbled upon the CNN-IBN Top 100 Indian films, while the list was not to my liking; I noticed this film, Agraharathil Kazuthai (Donkey in the Brahmin Colony) in the list. With my scanty knowledge in the films, I haven’t come across this film or title. It was said this film was released in 1977, so I turned to my mother who used to see more films in her earlier days, she said she had heard about this film, but haven’t seen it. Well if she hasn’t seen it then it is not a commercial release. It was labeled as “art” film and was deprived to major release. Luckily, I found this film in YouTube, the full movie.
Plot
Narayana Swamy (MBS – MB Sreenivasan) a college professor, while returning from work a little donkey (He later names it as “Chinna”) is seen in front of his house. Later he comes to know that the neighborhood mob have harassed and killed the mother donkey. Taking pity on the little donkey, he decides to make it as his pet or give refuge to it. As days progress his job as a professor is at stack because of this donkey, the college students ridicules him. The principal of the college thinks this will malign the reputation of the college. So he decides to takes the donkey to his native, a village. He leaves the donkey in his father’s house, an agraharam. He also appoints a mute girl, Uma, to look after the donkey and he leaves to the city.
As in the city, people ridicule this donkey-business in the village. Some people use this donkey for their own needs to intentionally bring disrupt to their neighbor’s. Everyone starts to blame the donkey and they kill it. After this, good incidents happen to some villagers and they inherit this to the donkey, terming it as a divine donkey and also plan to build a temple for it. The professor in the end learns that the donkey is killed, so he tries to give a funeral to the dead donkey, the fire then spreads to the entire village and eventually everything is burned down.
Symbols !!
The above said is the plot, but there should some inner meaning to it. This is not a fantasy story, but something is there hidden by the maker. Certainly no sensible being will make a donkey as pet. The professor is from the Brahmin caste, this is why the film is titled as Agraharam (Usually identified as a Brahmin colony).
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| John Abraham |
What does the “donkey” symbolize? Most of the religious seers or saints irrespective of any religion are first condemned. People don’t accept it and only after some “so-called adhoc” divine interventions or miracles they make these saints as gods. In this film the villagers (Brahmins) go on to associate the donkey as a divine power, while they initially hated it. I guess the film maker tried to ridicule the superstitions, “god” as it presented by man or it is a just plain donkey.
According to Cinema of Malayalam, the film was about to be telecast in Doordharshan, but was forced to cancel because of the protests.
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| MB Sreenivasan |
The film was directed by John Abraham, more leftist, he made four films (rest three in Malayalam). While preparing for the fifth film, he died in a tragic accident. MBS, a Marxist joined Communist party, latter become a musician.
YouTube Full movie with English Sub-titles
External Links
Nice post, lovely narration. looking for more review like this.
ReplyDeleteThanks Vinoth Sir. Most of the reviews which I write are rare\unknown films.
ReplyDelete