Sanalkumar a new-age Malayalee filmmaker

Kerala-based director and poet Sanalkumar Sasidharan represents the new art house cinema in Malayalam. In an intolerant world where a filmmaker thinks twice even before writing a dialogue because he or she fears its social and political consequences,  Sanalkumar prefers to stand by  his convictions.

Unlike most other filmmakers who have a stereotypical background in filmmaking or who have trained in films schools, Sanal is a new-age digital person, who knows how to exploit the power of social media to its fullest potential.

He is a son of a pan-shop owner and grew up in a village near Thiruvananthapuram. He completed his higher education in Law. Like many Malayalees, he worked in the Gulf,  but soon the charm wore off and he returned home to the world of cinema. Poetry is Sanal's first love, and he beautifully weaves the medium into his narration. 

In 2015, Sanal turned a short story Ozhivudivasathe Kali (An Off-day Game) by Unni R into a terrific film, which won the Kerala state government’s award for the best feature film of the year. The previous year, he had won the best director award film for his debut feature, Oralpokkam. The storyline of Oralpokkam revolves round an honest man-woman relationship in the backdrop of a natural calamity.

Sanal’s movies are, in fact, an extension of his analysis of the cultural production in Kerala. His movie, Ozhivudivasathe Kali becomes a satire on contemporary Kerala, deeply exploring issues like political corruption, caste prejudices and colour discrimination. The movie follows five middle-aged men who get together for a booze party during an election holiday in Kerala. Later, they spot a prey in the woman, who comes to cook for them. The sexual tension is evident and the woman, aware of it, is guarding herself.

In his movies, you can see a clear divide between art-house cinema and commercial films and that the twain can never meet. However, the Malayalam film industry, like other industries in India, continues to be controlled by star power. Most of the movies are about the stars and an audience which refuses to see cinema as art.  

Last year, Sanal, decided to title his upcoming movie Sexy Durga, and that we believe, ought to have called for enormous guts. Sanal says that Sexy Durga is a scriptless movie. The movie is being touted as a realistic erotic thriller which discusses the issue of moral policing.  Sexy Durga has already made news as it was considered in the competition section of the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR). The movie is releasing in theatres in Kerala on January 27. 

• Sanalkumar
• Malayalam filmmaker
• Mollywood