AN INSIGHT INTO THE SUBALTERN IN MALAYALAM FILM: A CULTURAL INVESTIGATION OF MALAYALAM FILM PAPILIO BUDDHA BY JAYAN K. CHERIAN

Abstract

The subject of subalternity with its innate consequences is yet to discover support among movie producers in India. Dynamic movie producers of the 1960s endeavoured to address the subject of subaltern and set out to give the subaltern a voice, however they stayed solitary endeavours. Through an inquiry into a Malayalam film (a local film industry of Kerala in India) Papilio Buddha, this paper studies the portraiture of Dalit people group in Indian silver screen. In spite of the fact that Malayalam film industry has attempted to address the worry of Dalits, they have been stereotyped from various perspectives and diminished to being sidekicks to villains or incompetent workers having no character. They stayed as instruments to worship the main hero and to help the protagonist to bring out his heroism. They are like the poor helpless victims who always help the hero to display his heroism. Papilio Buddha got media consideration when it was denied by the censor board as it investigates the region of Dalit cognizance by concentrating the focal point on the land strike by the Dalit people group and making a counter story to the hitherto glorified pictures made by the state.