Page 08

Malayalam Page 08

Ramu Karat, one of the directors of Neelakkuyil (the other was P. Bhaskaran), went on to become a successful director in the 1960s and 1970s. P. Bhaskarandirected many acclaimed and hit films in the 1960s and 70s. 

The cameraman of Neelakkuyil, A. Vincent, also became a noted director of the 1960s and 1970s. Notable films of this decade include Odayil Ninny, Bhargavi Nilayam (1964), Chemmeen (1965), Murappennu (1965) and  ruttinte Athmavu (1966). 

The era of colour films came to Malayalam cinema with its first colour film, Kandam Bacha Coat (1961). Chemmeen (1965), directed by Ramu Karat and based on a story by Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai, went on to become immensely popular, and became the first Malayalam film to win the National Film Award for Best Feature Film. Most of the films of the 60s were animated by the nationalist and socialist projects, and centred on issues relating to caste and class exploitation, the fight against obscurantist beliefs, the degeneration of the feudal class, and the breakup of the joint-family system. In 1960s M Krishnan Nair, Kunchacko and Subramanyam were the leading malayalee producers.