''Raman'' (English: ''Travelogue of Invasion'') is a 2008

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of ...

film written and directed by Dr. Biju. A controversial and much debated-over socio-political film, it shows two variants of invasion by

imperialist Imperialism is the maintaining and extending of power over foreign nations, particularly through expansionism, employing both hard power (military and economic power) and soft power ( diplomatic power and cultural imperialism). Imperialism fo ...

forces—of

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

and

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

. The film was an official selection for eight international film festivals including the prestigious

Cairo International Film Festival The Cairo International Film Festival is an annual internationally accredited film festival held in Cairo Opera House. It was established in 1976 and has taken place every year since its inception, except for 2011 and 2013, when it was cancelled ...

.Al Hind: A Relook
According to the director, the film "shows how economic, cultural and military invasion by the U.S. ends up annihilating third-world countries like India and Iraq."
/ref>

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

has been described as a "political terrorist" in the film.

Plot

''Raman'' tells the story of Raman (Anoop Chandran), a village tea-shop assistant in Kerala and Diya Raman (Avantika Akerkar), wife of the US Defence Secretary. A media activist, she is trying to make a documentary about the adverse impact of

American imperialism U.S. imperialism or American imperialism is the expansion of political, economic, cultural, media, and military influence beyond the boundaries of the United States. Depending on the commentator, it may include imperialism through outright mi ...

, worldwide. The film has two parallel tracks, one set in India shows how

globalisation Globalization is the process of increasing interdependence and integration among the economies, markets, societies, and cultures of different countries worldwide. This is made possible by the reduction of barriers to international trade, th ...

creates economic and cultural imbalances in developing nations, the other is about the US's violent invasion of Iraq.

Cast

Anoop Chandran Anoop Chandran is an Indian actor and comedian who appears in Malayalam films. He was a contestant in the reality show '' Bigg Boss Malayalam Season 1'' in 2018. Career Mostly appearing in comic roles, he is best known for his roles in ''Clas ...

as Raman * Avantika Akerkar * Thazhava Sahadeven * Seenath * S. Saji * Chayansarkar

Production

The film was made with a shoestring budget of and was shot in

and

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...

Release

The film had its world premiere on 30 November 2008 at the STEPS International Film Festival. The film had a limited theatrical release in Kerala on 16 January 2009. It was released at a theatre each in

Kozhikode Kozhikode (), also known as Calicut, is a city along the Malabar Coast in the state of Kerala in India. Known as the City of Spices, Kozhikode is listed among the City of Literature, UNESCO's Cities of Literature. It is the nineteenth large ...

Thrissur Thrissur (, ), Renaming of cities in India, formerly Trichur, also known by its historical name Thrissivaperur, is a city and the headquarters of the Thrissur district in Kerala, India. It is the List of most populous urban agglomerations in Ke ...

and

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram ( ), also known as Trivandrum, is the Capital city, capital city of the Indian state of Kerala. As of 2011, the Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation had a population of 957,730 over an area of 214.86 sq. km, making it the ...

. The film was shown at at least 8 international film festivals including the following.59thNFAOfficialCatalouge
/ref> * November 2008: STEPS International Film Festival – "Kiev" Cinema section * December 2008: 7th

Chennai International Film Festival The Chennai International Film Festival (CIFF) is a festival organised in the city of Chennai, India, by a film society, the Indo Cine Appreciation Foundation (ICAF), with the support of government of Tamil Nadu, The Government of Tamil Nadu, ...

* November 2009:

33rd Cairo International Film Festival The 33rd annual Cairo International Film Festival was held from November 10 to November 20, 2009. Indian director Adoor Gopalakrishnan was the president of the jury. Films in competition The following films competed for the Golden Pyramid. Di ...

– "Incredible India" section * December 2009: 14th

International Film Festival of Kerala The International Film Festival of Kerala (abbreviated as IFFK) is a film festival held annually in Thiruvananthapuram, the capital city of Kerala, India. This film festival started in 1996 and is hosted by the Kerala State Chalachitra Academy ...

References

{{reflist 2008 films 2000s Malayalam-language films 2008 drama films Films about terrorism in India Films directed by Dr. Biju Films shot in Kozhikode Films shot in Thrissur Films shot in Thiruvananthapuram Films shot in Rajasthan Iraq War films Films about globalization