I have seen the movie "PAZHASSI RAJA" with the sense of the history which happened 210 years back.Cinema has a Hollywood standard and a great experience. But it has not covered the first part history of Pazhassi, ie his battle attempt against Tippu Sulthan with the support of British.I think it has avoided considering the present communal harmony of Kerala If this film a Hollywood production,( like by Attenborough or Splint Burg) there will be a real story justifiable to history. However, even neglecting this part from Pazhassi'shistory, the film is almost justifiable to history and more over very appriciable.
Let us examine the history beyond cinema:
The British in Kerala had interest only in trade at beginning. But they had to involve in the political struggle prevailed between some kings in Kerala to succeed their trade monopoly than French and Dutch. They purposefully created conflict between Kerala Kings to dominate their power and trade.
A military-turned ruler of Mysore, Hyder Ali had no sea port to bring ware fare & horses to his kingdom (Mysore) and French was ready to supply to them.But he could not easy to reach French dominated Pondicherry.So he intended to capture the way to Mahe which was a French region and his troop with horses came to Malabar on 1766 through the various kingdoms in north to south of Kerala. Some of them avoided confrontation by giving him wealth and warfare (Samoothiri gave Rs 28 lacs,Kochi king gave 4 lacs and 8elephants,Thiruvithankoor king gave 15 lacs and 8 elephants etc.) and some of them fought with him by shake handing British.( Among these, Pazhassi was prominent) It was the main need of British to defeat their strong enemy, Mysore King,(otherwise British might had evacuated from Malabar much century earlier) But in the 3rd Anglo-Mysore war (1790-92) British defeated the King,Tippu Sulthan and killed him at a face to face battle. (They finished their No.1 enemy which might have the ruler of Kerala and eliminator of British from south India)
After the defeat of Tippu, malabar kings and feudals were reinforced at their places. At this time Brtish imposed huge taxes as the rewards of their war against Tippu . this was not bearable to Kerala kings & feudals.
When Kerala was ruled from Mysore by Tipu and Haider, their officers used to collect taxes directly from the farmers bypassing the land lords, but the British changed this and decided to collect taxes directly from the Kings and Nair Lords. The amount fixed as tax by the British was unreasonable and people did not have the capacity to pay that much. Faced with revolts from people, the kings were unable to collect the taxes.
After Tipu left, the British ignored Pazhassi Raja and gave the land to his uncle(in flim Thilakan) on lease. This insult also helped in triggering the revolt. Pazhassi Raja stopped collecting taxes and this upset the British. Since the king was popular, they could not do anything but stop collecting tax for a year, but to add more insult, they extended the lease given to his uncle for another five years. On June 28, 1795, Pazhassi Raja challenged the British by stopping all tax collection and giving refuge to people who were considered revolutionaries by the British.
The Army was deployed under Lt. Gordon tried to arrest the king in his palace, but he had already escaped. The British negotiated with him and allowed him to return, but another misunderstanding caused him to flee again to the mountains of Wynad. Showing that there are no permanent enemies or friends, he sought the help from Mysore, from the same people he helped the British fight. The year 1797 saw a series of revolts resulting in the loss of lives for many British soldiers and they were forced to withdraw. With an army of thousands of Nairs and Kurichiyas, Pazhassi inflicted such defeat on the British that they were forced to retreat and negotiate. The lease with his uncle was canceled and Pazhassi agreed to live peacefully with the British.
In 1799, after the fall of Tippu at Srirangapatnam, the British decide to take over Wynad which Pazhassi claimed as his own. The peace treaty was broken and with an army of Nairs and Kurichiyas, Pazhassi decided to wage a guerilla war from the mountains of Wynad. The fighting started in June 1800, and the British strategy was to isolate Pazhassi from his Southern Malabar supporters. They succeeded and Pazhassi was left roaming in the forests with his wife(in flim actor Kaniha) and few supporters.
His supporters like Chuzhali Nambiar, Peruvayal Nambiar and Kannavathu Shankaran Nambiar were caught and hanged, but this did not halt Pazhassi. In 1802 Edachena Kungan Nair ,Kaitheri Ambu Nair and Thalakkal Chanthu captured Panamaram Fort and killed the 25 British soldiers there and this victory brought a new vigor to the resistance movement.
An increase in tax at this stage upset the local population which rose in revolt. The Pazhassi soldiers made use of this and inflicted more damage on the British. Besides this the British troops caught diseases and it looked like they were in deep trouble
Confrontation with the British
The potent cause of the revolt was the unpopular and unjust revenue policy followed by the occupying foreign British East India Company in Malabar. He stopped all collections of revenue. The Raja further threatened to cut down all the black pepper vines if the Company's officers persisted in revenue collection.
In April 1796, an unsuccessful effort was made by the British to capture the Raja in his own palace at Pazhassi.
On December 18, the British Commissioner issued a proclamation forbidding the people to assemble or to assist the Pazhassi Raja and warning them that if they did so, they would be considered as irreconcilable enemies of the Company and that their property would be confiscated. On December 30, a futile attempt was made to reconcile the differences between the Raja and the Company. On 8 January 1797, Pazhassi Raja's Nairs launched daring attack on the havildar's guard stationed at Pazhassi and the whole party except one man was killed. In the battles fought on three successive days, 9th, 10th and 11 March 1797, the detachment made by the Company forces was overpowered by the swords, spears, bows and arrows of Pazhassi Raja's Nairs. As the situation was full of perils, a reconciliation with the Pazhassi Raja became a matter of political expediency.
After South Canara and other parts of South India were occupied after battle of Seringapatnam in 1799, Pazhassi Raja raised the standard of opposition a second time and ; shook for a while the very foundations of occupying British power .
Colonel Stevenson's efforts early in 1801 cut off the pazhassi Raja from his adherents by May the British troops had made much headway and with every port both above and below the ghats in British hands and the whole Nairs disarmed, the Pazhassi Raja became a wanderer in the jungles accompanied by his wife and immediate attendants.
On May 24, 1804, Colonel Macleod issued a proclamation warning the people that they would be treated as rebels if they failed to furnish information about rebel movements and if they helped the Pazhassi troops with arms, ammunition or provisions. Finally the proclamation of June 16 offered rewards for the apprehension of Pazhassi - Raja, two other members of his family and his principal lieutenants and declared their estates and properties confiscated from that date.
Death
Thomas Harvey Babar, a young British officer came as the sub collector of Thalassery in 1804 and was assigned the responsibility of suppressing the Pazhassi revolution. In April, he issued a directive making it illegal for the local population to help the revolutionaries and he also mandated that the British should be informed about the movements of the revolutionaries. On June 16, a reward was announced for the capture of Pazhassi and his commanders and soon Thalakkal Chanthu was captured
On November 1st 1805, Baber took direct charge of the operations. November 30th was an important day for Pazhassi Raja; it was his mother's death anniversary. He bathed in the Mavila Thodu, and finished his prayers. The British attacked them lead by Thomas Baber. Pazhassi was wounded very much in the battle. After the battle they found the dead body of Pazhassi in the shore of Mavila Thodu. According to Baber, he might be one of the men who fell very first in the war. The Raja's body was cremated with "customary honours". With the death of Pazhassi Raja, the resistance movement in north Kerala came to an end.
His body was taken back with respect by the British and cremated, but his death bought an end to the resistance movement. The other leaders either committed suicide or left the country.
Puralimala between Mattannur and Muzhakkunnu was the center of Pazhassi revolt (1793-97; 1800-1805)
What Told Us the Cinema
Director Hariharan and writer M T Vasudevan Nair say about an important episode, which is Pazhassi Raja's war against the British that happened more than 210 years.
The film begins during the time when the British had ordered to levy heavy taxes from the various kingdoms and Pazhassi Raja (Mammootty), who belonged to the Kottayam Royal family in Thalassery of Malabar region in Kerala, opposed this. After being forced to flee with his Queen Kaitheri Makkom(Kaniha), Lieutenant Edachena Kunkan (Sarathkumar) and Kaitheri Ambu (Suresh Krishna) to the forests, Pazhassi Raja started guerilla warfare against the British from the forests in Wayanad. He had the support of the tribal warriors like Thalackal Chanthu (Manoj K Jayan) and Neeli(Padmapriya).
Mammootty is grace personified and the perhaps the best thing about him as the mighty Pazhassi Raja is that it is virtually impossible to imagine anyone else in his place. Shorn of any artifice or nervous energy he is real. 20 years after Oru Vadakkan Veeragadha, he still looks majestic and handsome. Without doubt, this is one of the best roles in his illustrious career.
The surprise packet is Sarath Kumar, who looks perfectly fit, heroic and absolutely invincible as Edachena Kunkan. Kaniha looks beautiful even without any make-up or jewellery and has the royal look that is required for her role as Kaitheri Makkom.
As the fierce tribal girl who fights like a cheetah, Padmapriya excels in her role as Neeli. Manoj K Jayan, Suresh Krishna and Suman have all done their job quite convincingly. The rest of the cast, which include the English actors like Linda Arsenio, also delivers an inspiring performance.
Hariharan and MT Vasudevan Nair have proved their brilliance when they team up several times before and once again, they underline their eminence, with a genuine effort. The technical aspects like Ramanath Shetty's cinematography, Ravi Dewan's action, Resul Pookkutty's sound and Sreekar Prasad's editing have also succeeded in taking to a different level.
Yes, there are aspects which one feels could have been better, like Ilayaraja’s music( it is not so expected) but the film as a whole is good enough that makes us forget those flaws. Critics might say that the film has taken some cinematic liberties and in fact it does but on the whole it is engaging and entertaining.
The aspect most attracted me that the tribal style of fighting. It has its originality.
Sound mixing maestro Rasoo Pukkutty done well (Exg: a fighting seen at rainy time)
I request to all to see the cinema and post your comments
Wahab, after the hangover of seeing cinema
from Keerthi Theatre,Vadakara
Mail your suggestionsto: wahabkp@gmail.com
