Name: Vilkkanundu Swapnangal
Genre: Drama
Released: 1980-05-16
Rating: 7.3
Cast: Sukumaran, Sudheer, Bahadur

Immigration to the Persian Gulf has spanned a good 4 decades among the people of Kerala starting from the 70's, when the flocking began in illegal boats to Iran (Then Persia). A great majority of the malayalee population have always been attracted by the wealth of black gold compared to an otherwise industrially backward hometown of theirs. Years later, the same community has made their mark in the Middle Eastern states with generations toiling away their life and compromising with their dreams for the sake of families back home. The present generation has seen a lot of delineations of life in the gulf kingdoms from Arabikkadha, Diamond Necklace and literary works such as Dubai puzha or the slightly more different Aadujeevitham. However even in the early 80's, the renowned writer and film maker genius M.T.Vasudevan Nair had made a celluloid adaptation of such a tale. Vilkkanund Swapnangal is indeed the story of dreams for sale, of people who took a plummet into an unknown magical land to realize their dreams. In their quest for more and more money, some people lost their sprint in life, while others compromised for the exterior appearance of lavishness.

As the story unfolds we have Sukumaran playing the protagonist, a typical M.T kind of hero, one could say. His character has all the archetypal individualities and background of a lead man from an M.T novel or short story. The man with a poor and tormented flashback leaves his home land in search of more money and returns back with seeds of vendetta. However things have changed back home and time has reduced his old nemeses to weak personas that started respecting him for his new found fortune. The stand-off with his past and his obligations back in the gulf lands him in a quandary which carries off the latter part of the movie. The first half traces the advance of the lead man right from his illegal mooring in UAE, the trials and tribulations he has to undergo before getting employed and his further rise in the career hierarchy. Those who have seen Dubai only within the last few years, including me would have been flabbergasted for sure after watching this MT piece directed by Azad. It was a totally arid desert land back then, as the movie illustrates, which was transformed in a whiff with a genie's wave apparently! People who have read M.Ts literary works can find an uncanny resemblance to the novels Kaalam, Naalukettu or Bandhanam, in the way the central character is evolved from his beginnings to present. The protagonist is always shown as an ultimate loser in life in spite of his pecuniary gains or social status, as is the case with many of M.T's lead men in bookish works. The script also touches regular areas of M.T like waning of the higher caste groups after land redistribution movement by the communist party, corresponding changes in social strata and nostalgic indulgences of village life.

A very curious trivia about this movie, maybe the only reason this flick is talked about during present times would be the fact that this was the first ever released movie of superstar Mammootty. Playing a miniscule role as the lesser antagonist to Sukumaran, he carries off the part of the drunkard who still basks in his old social glory quite well. It's well known that Sukumaran who was M.T's regular choice for his movies was gradually replaced by Mammootty, who leveraged them well and went on to grow into one of the biggest names in Motion picture production. Considering the time of release of the movie and the novelty of plot, Vilkkanund Swapnangal could be appreciated for such a theme. Nevertheless, it is definitely a less reminisced screenplay of M.T paralleled to his other classics.

Malayalam cinema, based in Kerala, is known for its grounded narratives, literary screenplays, and strong character-driven storytelling.The industry is celebrated for innovatively blending realism with bold, socially conscious themes.

The drama genre is a broad category that features stories portraying human experiences, emotions, conflicts, and relationships in a realistic and emotionally impactful way. Dramas delve into the complexities of human life, often exploring themes of love, loss, morality, societal issues, personal growth, with the aim to evoke an emotional response from the audience by presenting relatable and thought-provoking stories.

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Vilkkanundu Swapnangal

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