At a recent media interaction for director Jeo Baby’s Malayalam film Kaathal – The Core, actress Jyothika called her co-actor Mammootty a “real life, true hero”.
And after watching him as Mathew Devassy – a middle-aged gay protagonist – in the film, many in India are inclined to agree.
The veteran plays a retired, married bank clerk with a daughter in college. As he prepares to run in the village elections, his wife, played by Jyothika, files for divorce after discovering he is gay and has a male lover.
The film has courtroom scenes, but it centres on Mathew’s inner struggle. It also beautifully captures the silence of the household and the rumours circulating in the village.
Released last month, Kaathal has become a commercial success as well as a critical one. But importantly, according to The New York Times, what stands out is the decision of one of South India’s biggest stars to take on the role of a gay man and portray him so sensitively.
The dignified and nuanced film, crucially, brings to the fore the importance of how big stars like Mammootty and Jyothika, who returns to the big screen after three years, fit into humble places with much grace.
It also squashes stereotypes of how an Indian hero should be portrayed on screen, and whether a big-name actor should risk doing an experimental, bold film.
The director said he thought of just one actor for the role when the writers approached him: Mammootty, a 72-year-old star with a large following in Kerala.
“Mammootty’s decision to both star in and produce Kaathal helped to keep the film, and the subject it tackles, in the public eye,” said Baby.
Kaathal also proved another point: Progressive stories that are low-budget and charged with real human drama can also be successes.
It is an Indian film without song and dance. The lovers don’t share a word, their main interaction a fleeting moment of eye contact in the monsoon rain. There are no car chases and no action stunts. The men are vulnerable. They cry.
“We have a wonderful audience here,” said Baby. “The same audience creates success for mass movies and at the same time for small movies and comedies.”
Indo-Asian News Service
