''Amaram'' () is a 1991 Indian

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 ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

directed by Bharathan and written by A. K. Lohithadas. It stars Mammootty, Maathu,

K. P. A. C. Lalitha Maheshwari Amma, better known by her stage name K. P. A. C. Lalitha (10 March 1947 – 22 February 2022), was an Indian film and stage actress who worked primarily in the Malayalam cinema, Malayalam film industry. Considered one of the greatest ...

, Ashokan, Murali, Chitra, and Kuthiravattam Pappu in the main roles. The film's score is composed by Johnson while the songs are by Raveendran.

won the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Bhargavi, and Mammootty won the

Filmfare Awards South The Filmfare Awards South are annual awards that honour artistic and technical excellence in the Telugu cinema, Tamil cinema, Malayalam cinema and Kannada cinema. They are presented by ''Filmfare'' magazine of The Times Group. When it was intr ...

Best Actor Award for his role. The film was a critical and commercial success and is considered a classic in Malayalam Cinema. It ran for more than 200 days in Ragam theater, Thrissur, and played for over 50 days at Safire (Madras) theater.

Plot

Achootty, a

fisherman A fisherman or fisher is someone who captures fish and other animals from a body of water, or gathers shellfish. Worldwide, there are about 38 million Commercial fishing, commercial and Artisan fishing, subsistence fishers and Fish farming, fi ...

, lives with his daughter, Radha. The uneducated Achootty wants his daughter to be educated and become a doctor. His dreams are shattered when she falls in love with her childhood friend Raghavan which results in Achootty beating him up. Achootty restricts her from seeing Raghavan and tells her that education is the top priority. Kochuraman who is Raghavan's father suggests that Achootty accept Radha's relationship with Raghavan to which Achootty scornfully disapproves, resulting in Kochuraman's hatred towards Achootty. One day, Radha and Raghavan elope and get married, leaving Achootty heartbroken. Achootty does not like his son-in-law initially and in disappointment, does not talk to his daughter either. But slowly the young chap shows that he is an able and hard-working fisherman and gains Achootty's silent admiration. Achootty does not acknowledge this publicly and keeps heckling his son-in-law in public, taunting him to catch a

shark Sharks are a group of elasmobranch cartilaginous fish characterized by a ribless endoskeleton, dermal denticles, five to seven gill slits on each side, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the ...

and prove himself before daring to talk to Achootty. One day, Raghavan decides he's had enough of the taunting and goes to the deep sea to capture a shark. But he is inexperienced, and in a fit of daring, goes out alone in his

catamaran A catamaran () (informally, a "cat") is a watercraft with two parallel hull (watercraft), hulls of equal size. The wide distance between a catamaran's hulls imparts stability through resistance to rolling and overturning; no ballast is requi ...

. When he does not return, people suspect that Achootty killed him at sea as Achootty had also been to the sea that day. It is a stormy night and everyone is afraid of going to the sea to search for him. Kochuraman and some of the villagers attack him. At this point, Achootty's daughter also feels that her father has killed her husband and blames him. Having nothing to lose anymore, Achootty goes to the sea and finds Raghavan lying unconscious on the remains of his boat which is wrecked. Achootty rescues him and brings him back to the shore. Everyone understands Achootty's innocence but he feels let down by them. In the end, Achootty takes his boat and ventures into the sea, saying that is the only entity that has loved him unconditionally.

Cast

* Mammootty as Achootty, an uneducated fisherman * Maathu as Radha/Muthhu, the only daughter of Achootty whom he wishes to be a doctor * Murali as Kochu Raman, Raghavan's father * Ashokan as Raghavan, Radha's love interest, Jeevan John as young Raghavan *

KPAC Lalitha Maheshwari Amma, better known by her stage name K. P. A. C. Lalitha (10 March 1947 – 22 February 2022), was an Indian film and stage actress who worked primarily in the Malayalam film industry. Considered one of the greatest actresses in the ...

as Bhargavi, Raghavan's mother * Chithra as Chandrika, Kochuraman's sister * Balan K. Nair as Pillaichan * Kuthiravattam Pappu as Raman Kutty * Zainuddin as Damodaran

Crew

voice-artists

Music

The film score was composed by Johnson. The film's soundtrack contains four songs composed by Raveendran. The lyrics were written by Kaithapram Damodaran Namboothiri. The song "Hridaya Raga Thanthri" is based on "Humko Man Ki Shakti Dena" from '' Guddi''.

Awards

; 38th National Film Awards * Best Supporting Actress -

; Kerala State Film Awards * Second Best Actor - Murali * Second Best Actress -

* Best Cinematography - Madhu Ambat ;

* Best Actor (Malayalam) - Mammootty

References

Legacy

The movie is considered a classical masterpiece in the Mollywood industry.

External links

* {{A. K. Lohithadas 1991 films 1990s Malayalam-language films Films directed by Bharathan 1991 drama films Films featuring a Best Supporting Actress National Film Award–winning performance Films with screenplays by A. K. Lohithadas Films scored by Raveendran Indian drama films