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KARUVELAM POOKAL
(Creatures of Darkness) - Tamil with English Subtitles |
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Credits: |
Direction & Screenplay: |
Poomani |
Music: |
Ilaiyaraaja |
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Cast |
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Nasser, Radhika, Charlie, Thalivasal Vijay, Soniya, Shakthi
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| The Director: |
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Poomani is a distinguished Tamil writer who has to his credit five novels and four short story collections. Rooted to the black cotton soil in Southern Tamil Nadu, he recreates with intense sincerity and authenticity the life of the rural poor. His works are a lucid record of the hopes and aspiration of the poor. This is his first Indian film.
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Notes on the Film: |
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While most filmmakers play safe, opting for tales of vendetta or romance, debutant filmmaker Poomani dares to be different in this searing comment on child labour. The film works at two levels. At one level, it depicts the tragedy in the life of a rural family struggling to eke out a living. At a deeper level, the film is about human poverty and greed, the exploitation of a situation by interested parties, like the match factory owner. And above all, the pathetic exploitation of children, who are forced to work long hours in dismal surroundings. Starting their day before sunrise and ending it after sunset. A serious film for a discerning viewer. |
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Festival Participation: |
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East-Asia Film & TV Festival , Malaysia - 1997 |
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Zanzibar International Film Festival - 1998 |
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Festival of Contemporary Indian Cinema , Seychelles - 2002 |
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Synopsis: |
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The story of a village in Tamil Nadu, India , the film follows the struggles of a people to eke out a living. Lack of rains forces these traditional agricultural laborers to seek alternate employment. Like many other families, Nallamuthu sends his adolescent daughter to work in the match factory in the nearby town. Though the work is hard with harsh working conditions, the money that Dhanalaxmi brings home corrupts Nallamuthu. Nallamuthu overlooks the urban influence in the form of good clothes and cosmetics, until Dhanalaxmi, tired of her life and now more independent and self-confident elopes with a fellow worker from a different caste. Events take a dramatic turn, but in all the turmoil, the routine continues in the village with the buses continuing to ferry the young workers to the match factory. |
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Available on VCD with English sub-titles for Rs. 149/- |
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