Govindan Aravindan

Directing

Govindan Aravindan

Born January 21, 1935 · Kottayam, Kerala, India

Died March 15, 1991 · aged 56

Govindan Aravindan was a pioneering filmmaker from Kerala and considered one of the greatest Indian directors. He was known for his unorthodox way of filmmaking; he changed his cinematic forms consistently and experimented in storytelling without regular narrative styles. His first movie was 'Utharayanam' which was a product of his association with a group of enthusiasts experimenting with the new…

Known For

EsthappanEsthappan · 1980
Esthappan
5.81980
MovieDramaFantasy
Esthappan is a fisherman, who lives in a seashore colony. His story unfolds through narrations by other fishermen about his miraculous acts. Through the contradictory statements of these people, a mystical figure of Esthappan unfolds.
VasthuharaVasthuhara · 1991
Vasthuhara
7.71991
MovieDramaRomance
Vasthuhara (Malayalam: വാസ്തുഹാര English: The Dispossessed) is a Malayalam social film by the late G. Aravindan which looks into the lives of partition refugees from East Bengal to West Bengal.
KummattyKummatty · 1979
Kummatty
6.31979
MovieFamilyFantasy
A stranger who may be the trickster magician Kummatty comes to a village in Malabar, India.
MarattamMarattam · 1988
Marattam
9.01988
MovieTV Movie
Panicker's one-act play deals with the relation of identification between an actor and his or her role. The action takes place on the eve of the last act of the Kathakali piece Keechakavadham (The Killing of Keechaka). The events surrounding the performance uncannily echo events in the play. One character even claims to have killed the lead actor of the play because he detested the character the man portrayed. However, the three different accounts that are presented of the same plot are never resolved or reconciled with each other. Each version is accompanied by a different style of folk music: the tune and rhythm of southern Kerala’s thampuran pattu, the pulluvan pattu and the ayappan pattu. The performers were drawn from the theatre and from Kathakali. In southern India, with its plethora of politicians using their film images to acquire inordinate wealth and power, Aravindan’s TV film bears on an eminently sensitive political as well as aesthetic issue.
The Circus TentThe Circus Tent · 1978
The Circus Tent
6.71978
MovieDrama
The arrival of a travelling circus sends ripples through the inhabitants of a remote Keralan village.
UnniUnni · 1989
Unni
9.01989
Movie
ChidambaramChidambaram · 1985
Chidambaram
7.51985
MovieDrama
Chidambaram is based on a short story by noted Malayalam writer C. V. Shriraman. The film is a deeply symbolic exploration of the man-woman attraction leading to betrayal and eventually to the purgatory of guilt.
PokkuveyilPokkuveyil · 1982
Pokkuveyil
6.61982
MovieDramaMusic
A young artist lives with his father, a radical friend and music loving young woman. His father dies, the radical friend leaves him and the woman is taken away by her family to another city.

Filmography

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MarattamMarattam · 1988
Marattam
9.01988
MovieTV Movie
Panicker's one-act play deals with the relation of identification between an actor and his or her role. The action takes place on the eve of the last act of the Kathakali piece Keechakavadham (The Killing of Keechaka). The events surrounding the performance uncannily echo events in the play. One character even claims to have killed the lead actor of the play because he detested the character the man portrayed. However, the three different accounts that are presented of the same plot are never resolved or reconciled with each other. Each version is accompanied by a different style of folk music: the tune and rhythm of southern Kerala’s thampuran pattu, the pulluvan pattu and the ayappan pattu. The performers were drawn from the theatre and from Kathakali. In southern India, with its plethora of politicians using their film images to acquire inordinate wealth and power, Aravindan’s TV film bears on an eminently sensitive political as well as aesthetic issue.

Director