Gore and violence make deep inroads into Malayalam cinema!

Who is the target audience?

Recently, Nalla Nilavulla Rathri (2023) directed by Murphy Devasy had too much gore in its second half — like hands getting torn apart by an explosion and a man getting killed in an acid attack.

Well, the makers stated that the movie belongs to the slasher genre; probably the reason why it didn’t attract the family audience to cinema halls.

‘Christopher’ has horrific rape scenes in it. (Supplied)

Nalla Nilavulla Rathri was given a U/A certificate even though the movie was high on technical aspects. In fact, the gory scenes made a mother and daughter leave the cinema hall in the middle of the film, said an industry insider, on the condition of anonymity.

Dulquer Salmaan’s King of Kotha (2023), too, portrayed violence and gore where a dreaded gangster is killed and his body parts are stashed in a suitcase.

Mammootty’s Christopher (2023) featured horrifying rape scenes which an average viewer found to be quite disturbing. The movie was rated U/A by the Censor Board.

Similarly, Ela Veezha Poonchira (2022) and Jayasurya’s John Luther (2022) also had gore. Both films were certified U/A.

What is the trend suggesting? Are the filmmakers trying to glorify violence? Who are their target audiences?

“While writing the script, the writer decides on the genre and the target audience. Some films are to be told in an intense way. There may be scenes that need to be conveyed in an intriguing way since dialogue always won’t help in conveying the meaning,” Ashiq Aimar, scriptwriter of the first Malayalam web series Kerala Crime Files, told South First.

He further explained, “If a scene demands, bloodshed needs to be included in the film. A description or a dialogue briefing about that particular scene apparently won’t help convey the essence to the audience.”

However, Ashiq clarified that the target audience must not be children in violence-based films and they must be barred from watching it. He insisted that an “A” certificate should be given to such projects.

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Not for kids, please!

‘Vikram’ had gore and violence towards its climax. (Supplied)

A majority of Malayalam films released in recent times were made to entertain audiences. There were a handful of children’s films, too.

Annu Mathew, a Kochi-based journalist, told South First, “While watching English films like Moana (2016), Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (1989), and some films made by Disney, we are sure that they don’t have any offensive or disturbing scenes and can be watched with kids in a theatre.”

“However, some movies that are supposedly based on Indian values and made for family audiences portray violence and yet are watched by kids,” she noted.

Annu opined that children should not watch such films at their impressionable age as the violence will affect them to a great extent.

“Sadly, parents don’t understand that violence and bloodshed scenes are bad for their wards. Violence, rape scenes, and double-meaning jokes are being packaged in these family-oriented films that cast comedy actors,” she pointed out.

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A growing concern among parents

Record breaker ‘Jailer’ has bloodshed and violence in it. (Supplied)

Annu further explained: “I am in my mid-30s and parents of my age share the same concern. Even when a movie is premiered on TV or OTT platforms, parents need to sit along with their kids and restrict them from watching such objectionable scenes.”

She observed, “The Malayalam movies, these days, have several scenes that have unjustified violence and jokes with sexual innuendo. I don’t want my child to grow up thinking that this is normal. Like it or not, one of the biggest impacts of mainstream films is that they tend to normalise a lot of things.”

Further, she added, “In Malayalam, children’s films are not being properly certified yet. The big festival releases in Malayalam mostly showcase unwanted masala content.”

According to a study titled “South Indian Film Industry in Transformation” by the International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology (IRJET), South Indian films have strong heroism as well as strong hero portrayal.

It also revealed that contemporary cinema has more violence and gore besides violence against children.

Highlighting the growing violence in movies, director Mani Ratnam once said that filmmakers should restrict themselves from presenting more details while shooting violence and instead focus on creating a mood for audiences.

Age-based certifications

‘Nalla Nilavulla Rathri’ is a slasher movie. (Supplied)

Not surprisingly, kids are allowed to watch violent movies with their parents in most theatres, except multiplexes.

To this, a Kochi-based exhibitor told South First, “If a particular movie has sexual content or violence, we do alert parents who bring their kids to our theatre. But a few parents don’t hesitate watching those movies with their children.”

However, in a welcome change, on 31 July this year, the Lok Sabha passed the Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill, 2023. Even though the new bill is formed to curb film piracy, it introduces new age-based certification for movies.

There are now three certifications under the “UA” category — UA 7+, UA 13+ and UA 16+. This means that children younger than the given age limit can access certain movies under parental guidance.

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Churuli drew flak

‘John Luther’ is an investigation thriller. (Supplied)

Looking into the past when the Malayalam film Churuli (2021) directed by Lijo Jose Pellissery was released on Sony LIV, there was an uproar over the foul language used in 90 percent of the flick.

To make matters worse, the scenes with cuss words were easily available on social media and forwarded as WhatsApp messages.

Following this, the Kerala High Court decried the “overdose of foul language” in Churuli.

The Covid-19 pandemic gave new opportunities for people to watch international films via OTT. Many people started watching Korean series and other foreign films.

“There has been a change in the attitude of the audience. Earlier, we were not allowed to show bold content or use cuss words. But now, the viewers don’t mind watching such scenes. So, we are including the elements in our scripts,” Ashiq Aimar said.