''Ningalenne Communistakki'' (meaning: ''you made me a communist'') is a

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 ...

socio-political play by

Kerala People's Arts Club Kerala People's Arts Club, abbreviated as KPAC, is a theatrical movement in Kayamkulam, Kerala, India. It was formed in the 1950s by a group of individuals having close ties with the Communist Party of India in Kerala. KPAC helped popularised ...

(KPAC). This was the second and most popular stage play of KPAC. This drama propelled KPAC into the forefront of Kerala cultural scene and played a historical role in popularising the

Communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

movement in Kerala during the 1950s eventually leading to the establishment of first democratically elected

communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

ministry in the world in 1957 in Kerala.

The history

The drama was inaugurated at

Chavara Chavara is a village in Karunagappally taluk, Kollam district, Kerala, India. It is a part of Kollam Lok Sabha constituency. Location and tourism Chavara is situated on the shores of the Arabian Sea and the major freshwater lake in Kerala ...

, Kollam, on December 6, 1952. It portrayed the transition of an elderly man from a conservative upper-caste

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

into a Communist. The play was a protest against the

feudalism Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was a combination of legal, economic, military, cultural, and political customs that flourished in Middle Ages, medieval Europe from the 9th to 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of struc ...

that prevailed in

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 ...

and it was the clarion call to rise and fight oppression and exploitation. On the 85th day of its performance in March 1953, the play was banned by the government under the Dramatic Performances Act, alleging that the play propagated "subversive ideas" and encouraged the people to "rebel against the government". Defying the ban, the troupe staged the play at

Kovalam Kovalam is a beach and seaside resort in the city of Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala, India. Kovalam is located southeast of the city center. The beaches around Kovalam are popular vacation destinations for both domestic and international travelle ...

, near

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 ...

leading to arrest of all the artists and a case being registered against them. Following an intense legal battle, the ban was lifted after two months. Since its appearance, this play remained the most popular in

and has been performed more than ten thousand times and has highly influenced the course of Kerala's political history.

The artists

Thoppil Bhasi Thoppil Bhaskara Pillai, known as Thoppil Bhasi (8 April 1924 – 8 December 1992) was an Indian Malayalam-language playwright, screenwriter, and film director. He was associated with the communist movement in Kerala and his play ''Ningalenne C ...

, then a young Communist activist who was underground for political reasons wrote the play under the pseudonym Soman. The drama was directed jointly by G. Janardhana Kurup and N Rajagopalan Nair MLA. The songs were written by

ONV Kurup Ottaplakkal Neelakandan Velu Kurup (known as O. N. V. Kurup; 27 May 1931 – 13 February 2016) was a Malayalam poet and lyricist from Kerala, India, who won the Jnanpith Award, the highest literary award in India for the year 2007. He received ...

and G. Devarajan composed the music and sung by KS George and K. P. A. C. Sulochana. The main actors were Kampisseri Karunakaran MLA, Adv. G. Janardhana Kurup, Adv. N Rajagopalan Nair (MLA), O. Madhavan, Thoppil Krishna Pillai (Thoppil Krishna pillai, the younger brother of Thoppil Bhasi acted in different plays of KPAC for 37 years continuously), Bhaskara Panicker, V.Sambasivan, Sreenarayana Pillai, K. P. A. C. Sulochana, Sudharma, Bhargavi and Vijayakumari. Later highly talented artists like

P. J. Antony P. J. Antony (1 January 1925 – 14 March 1979) was an Indian stage and film actor. He received the National Film Award for Best Actor for his performance in '' Nirmalyam'' in 1974. He was also the first actor working in Malayalam cinema to rec ...

, CG Gopinath and Adv. Kumarakom Sankunni Menon played leading roles in this play.

Patrons and prominent persons behind the staging of 'Ningalenne Communistakki'

M. N. Govindan Nair, Prof. MP Paul, R Sankara Narayanan Thampi, K Kesavan Potti, Adv. KS Rajamony, N Sreedharan (in Travancore-Cochin), K.P.R. Gopalan, E.M.S. Namboodiripad, AK Gopalan, KA Keraleeyan, NE Balaram, K Damodharan, MK Kelu, Azheekkodan Raghavan, Chathunni Master, A.V. Kunjambu, Justice. V.R. Krishna Iyer (in Malabar), E. Balanandan,

Prithviraj Kapoor Prithviraj Kapoor (born Prithvinath Kapoor; 3 November 1906 – 29 May 1972) was an Indian actor who is also considered to be one of the founding figures of Hindi cinema. He was associated with IPTA as one of its founding members and establish ...

Khwaja Ahmad Abbas Khwaja Ahmad Abbas (7 June 1914 – 1 June 1987) was an Indian film director, screenwriter, novelist, and journalist in Urdu, Hindi and English. He won four National Film Awards in India. Internationally, his films won the ( Golden Palm Gr ...

Balraj Sahni Balraj Sahni (born Yudhishthir Sahni; 1 May 1913 – 13 April 1973) was an Indian film and stage actor, who is best known for (1946), '' Do Bigha Zameen'' (1953), '' Chhoti Bahen'' (1959), '' Kabuliwala'' (1961), Waqt (1965) and '' Garm Hava'' ...

(in Bombay).

Comments and Criticisms

E.M.S. Namboodiripad, in his essays "From 'Pattabacki' to 'Ningalenne Communistakki'" (1954) and "Malayalam Theatre: 'Ningalenne Communistakki' and After" (1973), wrote that one of the major flaws of "Ningalenne Communistakki" was that the Communist characters in the play failed to impress and did not correspond to real Communists. He commented that "They are puppets with no relationship to living Communist activists."

Trivia

The drama was made as a

movie in 1970 with the same name with

Prem Nazir Prem Nazir (born Abdul Khader; 6 April 1926 – 16 January 1989) was an Indian actor known as one of Malayalam cinema's definitive leading man, leading men of his generation. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential actors in the hist ...

and

Sheela Sheela Celine (born 24 March 1945) is an Indian actress and director who appears predominantly in Malayalam cinema. Paired with Prem Nazir, they hold the Guinness World Record for acting in the largest number of films (130) together as heroine ...

doing the lead roles. Thoppil Bhasi's son Mr. Soman formed the Thoppil Bhasi Theatres to stage a sequel of this play titled ''Enum Ente Thampranum'' (Me and My Lord), the staging date is not announced yet.''Ningalenne Communistakki'' (1970, Malayalam) Dances on the Footpath
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References