''Swapnadanam'' ( ml, സ്വപ്നാടനം, en, Journey Through a Dream) is a 1976

black-and-white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry ( Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 22 scheduled languages of India. Malayalam wa ...

-language film that marks the directorial debut of K. G. George. A marital psychodrama, it rejected all the usual song-dance numbers of popular cinema, yet succeeded in reaching the common mass. The film was a commercial success while maintaining its artistic quality. It won the

Kerala State Film Award for Best Film The Kerala State Film Award for Best Film is an award presented annually at the Kerala State Film Awards of India to the best film in Malayalam cinema. The awards are managed directly by the Kerala State Chalachitra Academy under the Department ...

and

National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Malayalam The National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Malayalam is one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India. It is one of sev ...

. The cast includes

Rani Chandra Rani Chandra (1949 – 1976), born in Kochi, Kerala, was a Malayalam film actress and winner of the Miss Kerala Title. She died in a plane crash in 1976. She acted in several landmark films such as '' Nellu'' (Malayalam, 1974), ''Bhadrakali'' ...

, Dr. Mohandas,

Soman Soman (or GD, EA 1210, Zoman, PFMP, A-255, systematic name: ''O''-pinacolyl methylphosphonofluoridate) is an extremely toxic chemical substance. It is a nerve agent, interfering with normal functioning of the mammalian nervous system by inhibiti ...

, Mallika and

P. K. Venukuttan Nair P. K. Venukuttan Nair (1931 – 26 November 2012) was an Indian theatre personality and Malayalam film actor. He was the vice-president of the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi and member of the Kendra Sangeet Natak Academy. He received the K ...

Plot

The story proceeds in flashbacks as the protagonist, Dr. Gopi, who has had a nervous breakdown, relives his past under psychiatric probing. It is the story of an ill-matched marriage — the husband, sensitive, introvertive and plagued by memories of a bygone love and the wife, rich, spoilt and self-centred — and how under the mounting stresses of daily life, the husband cracks up. Gopi is the only son of a widowed mother, and in strained circumstances, is put through medical college by his rich uncle on the understanding that Gopi marries his daughter Sumithra. Gopi, while in college, falls in love with a fellow-student, but they part company when his mother meets the girl and persuades her to give up the betrothed Gopi. Gopi's marriage with his rich cousin takes place, but it is doomed from its very start. They are not made for each other in either taste or temperament, and besides Gopi is haunted by memories of his former love. And Gopi, being the introvert he is, consummates the marriage, as it were, in a psychiatric ward.

Cast

as Sumithra * Dr. Mohandas as Gopi/Parameshwaran *

as Mohan *

Mallika Sukumaran Mohamallika Pillai (born 4 November 1954), better known as Mallika Sukumaran is an Indian actress and businesswoman, known for her works in Malayalam cinema. She debuted in 1974 with the Malayalam film ''Utharayanam'' by G. Aravindan. Since th ...

as Rosi Cheriyan *

T. R. Omana T. R. Omana is an Indian actress in Malayalam films. She mainly acts in supporting roles and mother roles. She has acted in more than 500 films. Personal life T. R. Omana was born as eldest among five children to T R Gopala Pillai, Timber mer ...

as Gopi's mother *

as Sumithra's father * Prema Menon as Kalyani *Sonia Isaac Thomas as Kamalam *

P. K. Abraham P. K. Abraham was an Indian actor in Malayalam movies. He acted more than 100 Malayalam films. He was an actor who had supporting roles and character roles during the 1970s and 1980s. He had worked for Malayalamanorama. He died in 1996 Film ...

as Psychiatrist Venugopal *Isaac Thomas as Psychiatrist * Anandavalli *

KPAC Azeez Azeez (27 November 1934 – 16 July 2003) was an Indian actor in Malayalam cinema. He acted in more than 100 films. He came into the movie industry as a villain, later he started doing character roles, such as police officer, jailer, and ministe ...

Soundtrack

The music was composed by

Bhaskar Chandavarkar Bhaskar Chandavarkar (16 March 1936 – 26 July 2009) was an Indian sitar player, academic and film and theatre composer who worked with well-known directors of Indian cinema like Mrinal Sen, Girish Karnad, Aparna Sen, K. G. George and Amol P ...

and the lyrics were written by P. J. Eezhakkadavu.

References

2
Swapnadanam: Sensuality and psychology of this dream land

External links

* 1970s Malayalam-language films Films directed by K. G. George Best Malayalam Feature Film National Film Award winners {{1970s-Malayalam-film-stub