Khaddama
Encyclopedia
Khaddama is a 2011 Malayalam drama film
co–written and directed by Kamal. It stars Kavya Madhavan
in the title role and was produced by P. V. Pradeep under the banner of Anitha Productions. Cinematography is by Manoj Pillai and the film was edited by K. Rajagopal. The film features songs composed by Bennet Veetraag
and the background music is by M. Jayachandran
.
The title of the film is a colloquial version of the Arabic
word Khadima ( "servant"). The film narrates the story of some immigrants in the Gulf through the life of a housemaid in Saudi Arabia
. It is scripted by K. Girishkumar and Kamal and the story is based on a feature by K. U. Iqbal, published in Bhashaposhini
, depicting the real–life incidents of a Kerala–born housemaid in Arabia. Principal photography for the film began in October 2010 and took place mainly in the Middle East
. After a special screening in the last week of January, the film made its theatrical debut in Kerala on 4 February 2011. The film's release was banned across the Middle East.
The film was well received by film critics, with most of them applauding it as a realistic film. The performance of Kavya Madhavan has been rated as one of the best in her career, while the film itself is regarded as the best one in Malayalam with a Gulf-centric theme.
who makes an effort to both identify "unknown Indians" whose bodies arrive at the mortuary and to secure their return back home.
Meanwhile, we are shown the story of Aswathi (Kavya Madhavan
), who is a lower mid-class Malayali woman from Pattambi, Kerala. She gets married to a small-time goon, Radhakrishnan (Biju Menon
) who confesses her about his pre-marriage life and assures a complete change. Unfortunately after a short period of happy life, he gets killed. Due to the financial constraints of her family and the untimely death of her husband, Ashwathi is forced to be the bread earner of the house and opts to go to the gulf. Usman (Suraj Venjaramood
), who is the car driver of an Arab family, belongs to Aswathi's village and he arranges the visa for Aswathi and brings her to Saudi Arabia. She lands in Saudi Arabia and many surprises await her, starting at the airport itself. She is forced to wear a burqa at all times, as part of the dress code of the country. She is subsequently exposed to a rigid culture and a slavery-like vocation and is taken up under a sponsor to work for him as a maid.
Aswathi had to face numerous troubles - sexual abuse and battery in the sponsor's house. Ashwathy is accompanied by Usman, who actually brought her to all the miseries. However, he indulges in a sexual affair with the Indonesia
n maid there and gets caught and is kicked out of the sponsor's house. Aswathi helps the other maid to escape the premises and in turn is tortured as punishment.
The story follows Razak, who tries to trace Aswathi who had mysteriously disappeared during an attempt to escape torture. On the parallel, we see Aswathi running into some good and bad people, eventually culminating in a deportation. After entering into much more troubles, she reaches Razak, who was actually in a search for her. He inquires her about the complete story. He eventually helps Aswathi leave for home back in Kerala.
Varshika Pathippu 2010. The report was based on the abuse and mistreatments of Khaddamas ("housemaids") in Saudi Arabia
and was particularly inspired by the true life incidents of a maid servant named Subaida. It was a small news item published in Malayalam News (a Malayalam daily published in the Gulf) in 2002 — Subaida Vilikkunnu, which forms the seed of the reportage. Iqbal says he is used to getting calls from Indians in deportation camps on a daily basis, but somehow it was the call from Subaida which struck a chord in him and he followed it up. Years later the Bhashaposhini editor-in-charge, K. C. Narayanan, asked Iqbal to do an article for its anniversary edition. Iqbal narrated several of his Gulf stories to him but it was the story of Subaida which appealed to the editor.
Kamal, who was inspired by the thematic significance and dramatic value of the story, immediately picked it up for his next film. He had already directed the Gulf-centric Perumazhakkalam
, which depicted the story of a young man facing death penalty in the Gulf. Kamal said: "The series that appeared in Bhashaposhini caught my attention and I thought the theme had immense potential for a feature film. Although Malayalam cinema has handled Gulf-centric themes before, this had a unique perspective as it is centred on a woman. Our previous Gulf narratives mostly revolve around men, money and memories of homeland. This, I thought, was a marked deviation from that. Hence the decision to make it into a film"
Kamal hired K. Girishkumar to co-write the screenplay. Girishkumar's earlier works were mostly family dramas
, such as Veruthe Oru Bharya
, Kana Kanmani
and Amrutham. Kamal and Girishkumar have included several real-life characters and incidents as Girishkumar says: "Many of the incidents captured in the film are taken from real-life incidents. Only the structure of the story is fictional, the rest of it has been picked up from various individual experiences." According to Kamal, more than 90 per cent of the film is captured from real life.
. Her previous association with Kamal was in Perumazhakkalam
, which won her a Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress
, public appreciations and critical praise. She was also introduced to films by Kamal as a child artist in Pookkalam Varavayi
, and more notabily in Azhakiya Ravanan
. Khaddama also marks her comeback to Malayalam cinema after she took a break from films for sometime, only recently returning. The film also marks her first screen appearance after the official divorce from Nischal
. According to Girishkumar, Kamal had no other choice for the protagonist of the film. He says: "Kavya was the first and obvious choice for the film. Even before the idea germinated into the story, she was decided as the protagonist." Kavya signed the project after soon after completing Priyanandanan
's Bhakthajanangalude Sradhakku
. According to Kavya, it is one of the best characters she has ever got. She says: "I was really moved when Kamal sir narrated the story, which will be an eye-opener to many women in south India with dreams of living in the Gulf. Aswathi is one of the best characters that I've ever done."
The other roles are played by Sreenivasan, Biju Menon
, Suraj Venjaramood
, Jaffer Idukki, Muralikrishnan
, Lena
, K. P. A. C. Lalitha
and Sukumari
. Sreenivasan's character of a social worker (named Razak Kottekkad) has been heavily influenced by the real-life character named Shihab. Suraj Venjaramoodu, known for his comic roles, plays a negative character in the film. Several theatre artists from Indonesia
, Iran
, Saudi Arabia
and Egypt
are featured in the film. Shine Tom, who plays Basheer, has also served as an assistant director for the film.
The film was launched in October 2010 with its pre-shooting blessing held in Kochi
, filming began on 20 October in Dubai
. Almost 90 per cent of the film was shot in Dubai and other parts of United Arab Emirates
, while the remaining parts were filmed in Ottappalam, Kerala. Though the film is set in Saudi Arabia
it was not filmed there. Kamal had visited several labour camps in Saudi Arabia and had gathered information from a jail personnel to know more about the life of the people there. He also spoke to many Khaddamas who returned to Kerala. Kamal argues that his research made the film more realistic and convincing. Manoj Pillai, who has been an assistant of Santosh Sivan
, an independent cinematographer for a few Malayalam films was the cameraman. Khaddama is perhaps the first Malayalam film to be shot extensively in a desert. Manoj Pillai says: "The desert is a difficult terrain to work on. It was stressful, but we managed it. And the footage looks nice. It is a testimony of the fantastic crew that we add"
The central character, Aswathi, appears in a black Pardah in major parts of the film. The costumes have been designed by Anil Kumar, while Pandiyan did the make up. Shafeer Sait, who has a long time association with Kamal, is the production controller. Suresh Kollam is the art director. Tapas Nayak, who was an assistant of H. Sridhar
, completed the sound design.
word Khadima ( "servant"). The name is generally used to address domestic workers in Arabian countries who come from other countries. Most of them are from North African countries, the Philippines
and Sri Lanka
. Indians are comparatively few, but most are from the Malabar region.
Kamal organised a special screening of the film on the first week of January. The screening was attended by several industry people including actresses Manju Warrier
and Samyuktha Varma
. The preview was held at D.L.S. theatre, Kakkanad
, Kochi
. The film received positive responses among those who attended the preview. After the show it was reported that, "Kavya was brilliant as the harassed Indian maid working in an Arab household".
Even though the film had a limited release it to became a box office winner. The film's fiftieth day celebration was held at the Avenue Centre, Kochi on 27 March. The function was attended by film directors Joshiy and Sibi Malayil
, producers Siyad Koker, Appachan
and Vyshakh Rajan, writer P. Sukumar, and politician V. M. Sudheeran
, along with the cast and crew of the film. During the function V. M. Sudheeran opined that Khaddama was one of the best films of recent times and that he had congratulated Kamal for the bold movie soon after watching it.
's lead performance has been rated as one of the best in her career.
M. Ashitha of Deccan Herald
said, "Director Kamal makes convincing depiction of the obscure fate of poor Indian women in an alien land. Kavya excels in her role. Manoj Pillai's outstanding camerawork makes the film realistic."
S. Anandan of The Hindu
commented, "Kamal's movie, on its part, attempts to catalogue the society's brutality meted out to Gulf Malayalees. The movie is a decent depiction of lives in exile in the Middle East. However, going by the accounts of Gulf deportees, what is shown is just the tip of the iceberg insofar as the agonies of the diasporic workers in the Gulf are concerned. Khaddama would have evoked a better response had its narrative been a little nuanced and punctuated with dark humour."
Paresh C. Palicha of Rediff.com
gave the film three out of five stars, saying "Khaddama is one example where he [Kamal] deals with a subject that requires realistic treatment and he has come up on top."
The reviewer of Sify.com
gave the film four out of five stars and stated, "Khaddama handles a different issue and it is indeed one that needs grave attention as well."
Nikhil Narayanan of Oneindia.in
stated, "If you are unhappy with the lack of women-centric themes in Malayalam cinema, here's a reprieve. This movie belongs to Kavya Madhavan, who has brilliantly delivered the role portraying the hardships of a Malayalee maid in a Sheikh's house in Saudi Arabia."
Asianet
's reviewer said, "All in all, 'Khaddama' is a quality offering from the master director, with a genuine upsetting story. The movie has plenty of faces that continue to haunt you even after the film has ended. This is a film for the discerning viewer who likes to go a little beyond the regular masala stereotype."
The reviews by Varthalokam, Mathrubhumi
, and Cinemajalakom were also favourable.
. Madhavan was in the final round in the Best Actress category, but she lost to Mitalee Jagtap Varadkar and Saranya Ponvannan
. She won the Best Actress Award
at the 2011 Kerala State Film Awards and Amrita-FEFKA Film Awards.
-based writer Salim Kurukkalakath claimed that the main story of the film was plagiarised from his story published in Madhyamam
weekly on 20 October 2000. Salim says he had written the story while he was working in the Gulf and alleges that though he had written to Kamal on the issue in the initial stages of film making itself, Kamal had not replied. "It became clear after I saw the film", he says."
, collaborating with Kamal for the first time after Perumazhakkalam
. The songs are composed by the duo Bennet Veetraag
and feature lyrics by noted poet Rafeeque Ahammed.
The soundtrack album, released on Satyam Audios, contains five songs. Out of the five songs only two, "Naattuvazhiyorathe" and "Vidhuramee", are featured in the film as the track "Ariyumo" was a promotional song. The soundtrack received critical praise, particularly for the melody in the tracks.
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
co–written and directed by Kamal. It stars Kavya Madhavan
Kavya Madhavan
Kavya Madhavan is an Indian film actress who works in Malayalam cinema. She made her debut in Pookkalam Varavayi as a child artist. In 1999, she became a lead actress in Lal Jose's Chandranudikkunna Dikhil.-Background:...
in the title role and was produced by P. V. Pradeep under the banner of Anitha Productions. Cinematography is by Manoj Pillai and the film was edited by K. Rajagopal. The film features songs composed by Bennet Veetraag
Bennet Veetraag
Bennet Veetraag are an Indian music composer duo in the Malayalam film industry. The duo consists of guitarist-songwriter Bennet and singer-musician Veetraag.-Early years and career:Bennet and Veetraag hails from the city of Kozhikode, Kerala, India...
and the background music is by M. Jayachandran
M. Jayachandran
M. Jayachandran is a film score composer, singer and musician in the Malayalam film industry. He has won Kerala State Film Awards for best music director in 2003, 2004, 2007, 2008 and 2010, maximum awards won by any music director. He also won the state award for best male singer in 2005...
.
The title of the film is a colloquial version of the Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
word Khadima ( "servant"). The film narrates the story of some immigrants in the Gulf through the life of a housemaid in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
. It is scripted by K. Girishkumar and Kamal and the story is based on a feature by K. U. Iqbal, published in Bhashaposhini
Bhashaposhini
Bhashaposhini is an Indian monthly magazine. It is one of the oldest Malayalam literary review magazines.Bhashaposhini was first published in 1892. After a long break, this publication has been revived by the Malayala Manorama group of Publications...
, depicting the real–life incidents of a Kerala–born housemaid in Arabia. Principal photography for the film began in October 2010 and took place mainly in the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
. After a special screening in the last week of January, the film made its theatrical debut in Kerala on 4 February 2011. The film's release was banned across the Middle East.
The film was well received by film critics, with most of them applauding it as a realistic film. The performance of Kavya Madhavan has been rated as one of the best in her career, while the film itself is regarded as the best one in Malayalam with a Gulf-centric theme.
Plot
Razak Kottekkad (Sreenivasan) is a migrant social worker in Saudi ArabiaSaudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
who makes an effort to both identify "unknown Indians" whose bodies arrive at the mortuary and to secure their return back home.
Meanwhile, we are shown the story of Aswathi (Kavya Madhavan
Kavya Madhavan
Kavya Madhavan is an Indian film actress who works in Malayalam cinema. She made her debut in Pookkalam Varavayi as a child artist. In 1999, she became a lead actress in Lal Jose's Chandranudikkunna Dikhil.-Background:...
), who is a lower mid-class Malayali woman from Pattambi, Kerala. She gets married to a small-time goon, Radhakrishnan (Biju Menon
Biju Menon
Biju Menon is an Indian film actor who has mainly worked in Malayalam, Tamil, and Telugu films. He appears mostly in supporting roles, but has also acted in antagonistic roles. He made his debut in 1995 in Mannar Mathai Speaking...
) who confesses her about his pre-marriage life and assures a complete change. Unfortunately after a short period of happy life, he gets killed. Due to the financial constraints of her family and the untimely death of her husband, Ashwathi is forced to be the bread earner of the house and opts to go to the gulf. Usman (Suraj Venjaramood
Suraj Venjaramood
Suraj Venjaramood is a Malayalam film actor and mimicry artist. He mainly plays comic roles, though he has played some lead roles as well.-Life:...
), who is the car driver of an Arab family, belongs to Aswathi's village and he arranges the visa for Aswathi and brings her to Saudi Arabia. She lands in Saudi Arabia and many surprises await her, starting at the airport itself. She is forced to wear a burqa at all times, as part of the dress code of the country. She is subsequently exposed to a rigid culture and a slavery-like vocation and is taken up under a sponsor to work for him as a maid.
Aswathi had to face numerous troubles - sexual abuse and battery in the sponsor's house. Ashwathy is accompanied by Usman, who actually brought her to all the miseries. However, he indulges in a sexual affair with the Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
n maid there and gets caught and is kicked out of the sponsor's house. Aswathi helps the other maid to escape the premises and in turn is tortured as punishment.
The story follows Razak, who tries to trace Aswathi who had mysteriously disappeared during an attempt to escape torture. On the parallel, we see Aswathi running into some good and bad people, eventually culminating in a deportation. After entering into much more troubles, she reaches Razak, who was actually in a search for her. He inquires her about the complete story. He eventually helps Aswathi leave for home back in Kerala.
Cast
- Kavya MadhavanKavya MadhavanKavya Madhavan is an Indian film actress who works in Malayalam cinema. She made her debut in Pookkalam Varavayi as a child artist. In 1999, she became a lead actress in Lal Jose's Chandranudikkunna Dikhil.-Background:...
as Aswathi - Sreenivasan as Razak Kottekkad
- Murali GopyV. G. MuralikrishnanV. G. Muralikrishnan is an Indian screenwriter, actor and journalist. Murali is the son of legendary Malayalam film actor Bharath Gopi and Jayalakshmy. He made his debut as an actor and screen writer in the Lal Jose movie 'Rasikan'...
as Bharathan, the truck driver - Biju MenonBiju MenonBiju Menon is an Indian film actor who has mainly worked in Malayalam, Tamil, and Telugu films. He appears mostly in supporting roles, but has also acted in antagonistic roles. He made his debut in 1995 in Mannar Mathai Speaking...
as Radhakrishnan - K. P. A. C. LalithaK. P. A. C. LalithaMaheshwari Amma, better known by her stage name K.P.A.C. Lalitha, is a National Award winning Indian film and stage actress. She was the wife of late filmmaker Bharathan.-Biography:...
- SukumariSukumariSukumari is an Indian film actress who has primarily acted in Malayalam and Tamil films. She has been acting since she was 10 years old and has acted in various roles. The total number of her films is presumed to be about two-thousand. In 2003, she was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of...
as Razak's mother - Suraj VenjaramoodSuraj VenjaramoodSuraj Venjaramood is a Malayalam film actor and mimicry artist. He mainly plays comic roles, though he has played some lead roles as well.-Life:...
as Usman - LenaLena AbhilashLena Abhilash , is a Malayalam actress and a VJ . She is known for her contrasting roles in different Malayalam soaps, which otherwise is filled with tear-jerking female characters. She has acted in many films including Jayaraj's Sneham, Karunam and Shantam, Kochu Kochu Santhoshangal, Randam...
as Razak's wife - Shine Tom as Basheer
- Jaffer Idukki
- Fatma as the Indonesian maid
- Manu Jose
- Ali Khamees
- Mariam Sulthan
- Khaamiz. S. Mohammed
- Hala Al Sayed
- Ahmed Saleh
- Adnan Althuki
- Tehani Ali Mohammed
- Sasi Kalinga as Chandi Mash
- Ali Gael
Writing
Saudi–based journalist K. U. Iqbal wrote an article which was published in BhashaposhiniBhashaposhini
Bhashaposhini is an Indian monthly magazine. It is one of the oldest Malayalam literary review magazines.Bhashaposhini was first published in 1892. After a long break, this publication has been revived by the Malayala Manorama group of Publications...
Varshika Pathippu 2010. The report was based on the abuse and mistreatments of Khaddamas ("housemaids") in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
and was particularly inspired by the true life incidents of a maid servant named Subaida. It was a small news item published in Malayalam News (a Malayalam daily published in the Gulf) in 2002 — Subaida Vilikkunnu, which forms the seed of the reportage. Iqbal says he is used to getting calls from Indians in deportation camps on a daily basis, but somehow it was the call from Subaida which struck a chord in him and he followed it up. Years later the Bhashaposhini editor-in-charge, K. C. Narayanan, asked Iqbal to do an article for its anniversary edition. Iqbal narrated several of his Gulf stories to him but it was the story of Subaida which appealed to the editor.
Kamal, who was inspired by the thematic significance and dramatic value of the story, immediately picked it up for his next film. He had already directed the Gulf-centric Perumazhakkalam
Perumazhakkalam
Perumazhakkalam is a 2004 Malayalam film directed by Kamal. The film stars Meera Jasmine, Kavya Madhavan, Dileep and Vineeth. The film was adapted to Hindi by Nagesh Kukunoor as Dor....
, which depicted the story of a young man facing death penalty in the Gulf. Kamal said: "The series that appeared in Bhashaposhini caught my attention and I thought the theme had immense potential for a feature film. Although Malayalam cinema has handled Gulf-centric themes before, this had a unique perspective as it is centred on a woman. Our previous Gulf narratives mostly revolve around men, money and memories of homeland. This, I thought, was a marked deviation from that. Hence the decision to make it into a film"
Kamal hired K. Girishkumar to co-write the screenplay. Girishkumar's earlier works were mostly family dramas
Family film
A family film is a film genre that is designed to appeal to a variety of age groups and, thus, families.In December 2005, Steven Spielberg's 1982 film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial came first in a poll of the 100 Greatest Family Films. The genre today generates billions of dollars per annum.Family...
, such as Veruthe Oru Bharya
Veruthe Oru Bharya
Veruthe Oru Bharya is a 2008 Malayalam film directed by Akku Akbar; starring Jayaram and Gopika in the lead roles. This film was a comeback film for Jayaram as his films struggled at the box office for about five years.-Story:...
, Kana Kanmani
Kana Kanmani
Kana Kanmani is a 2009 family horror film by Akku Akbar starring Jayaram and Padmapriya. The film is a remake of the director's previous Hindi movie Gauri: The Unborn.-Plot:...
and Amrutham. Kamal and Girishkumar have included several real-life characters and incidents as Girishkumar says: "Many of the incidents captured in the film are taken from real-life incidents. Only the structure of the story is fictional, the rest of it has been picked up from various individual experiences." According to Kamal, more than 90 per cent of the film is captured from real life.
Casting and principal photography
The central character Aswathi is played by Kavya MadhavanKavya Madhavan
Kavya Madhavan is an Indian film actress who works in Malayalam cinema. She made her debut in Pookkalam Varavayi as a child artist. In 1999, she became a lead actress in Lal Jose's Chandranudikkunna Dikhil.-Background:...
. Her previous association with Kamal was in Perumazhakkalam
Perumazhakkalam
Perumazhakkalam is a 2004 Malayalam film directed by Kamal. The film stars Meera Jasmine, Kavya Madhavan, Dileep and Vineeth. The film was adapted to Hindi by Nagesh Kukunoor as Dor....
, which won her a Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress
Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress
The Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress winners:-References:**...
, public appreciations and critical praise. She was also introduced to films by Kamal as a child artist in Pookkalam Varavayi
Pookkalam Varavayi
Pookkalam Varavayi is 1991 Malayalam film directed by Kamal starring Jayaram, Shamili, Murali and Geetha. Divya Unni and Kavya Madhavan made their debuts in this movie....
, and more notabily in Azhakiya Ravanan
Azhakiya Ravanan
Azhakiya Ravanan is a 1996 Malayalam film directed by Kamal and written by Sreenivasan. Starring Mammootty, Bhanupriya, Sreenivasan, Innocent, Biju Menon, Rajan P.Dev, and Cochin Haneefa, the film is a rag-to-riches story of a person who eventually gets drunk on his success...
. Khaddama also marks her comeback to Malayalam cinema after she took a break from films for sometime, only recently returning. The film also marks her first screen appearance after the official divorce from Nischal
Nischal (actor)
Nischal Chandra is a Malayalam actor, known during his childhood acting career simply as "Nischal".-Career:...
. According to Girishkumar, Kamal had no other choice for the protagonist of the film. He says: "Kavya was the first and obvious choice for the film. Even before the idea germinated into the story, she was decided as the protagonist." Kavya signed the project after soon after completing Priyanandanan
Priyanandanan
Priyanandanan is a film and drama director from Kerala, India. His second movie Pulijanmam bagged the National Film Award for Best Film in 2007.-Biography:...
's Bhakthajanangalude Sradhakku
Bhakthajanangalude Sradhakku
Bhakthajanangalude Sradhakku is a 2011 Malayalam satirical drama film directed by National award-winning director Priyanandanan. The film is scripted by Manoj based on a story by Ranjith. It stars Kavya Madhavan and Irshad in the lead roles. The film narrates the story of a self-declared demi-god...
. According to Kavya, it is one of the best characters she has ever got. She says: "I was really moved when Kamal sir narrated the story, which will be an eye-opener to many women in south India with dreams of living in the Gulf. Aswathi is one of the best characters that I've ever done."
The other roles are played by Sreenivasan, Biju Menon
Biju Menon
Biju Menon is an Indian film actor who has mainly worked in Malayalam, Tamil, and Telugu films. He appears mostly in supporting roles, but has also acted in antagonistic roles. He made his debut in 1995 in Mannar Mathai Speaking...
, Suraj Venjaramood
Suraj Venjaramood
Suraj Venjaramood is a Malayalam film actor and mimicry artist. He mainly plays comic roles, though he has played some lead roles as well.-Life:...
, Jaffer Idukki, Muralikrishnan
V. G. Muralikrishnan
V. G. Muralikrishnan is an Indian screenwriter, actor and journalist. Murali is the son of legendary Malayalam film actor Bharath Gopi and Jayalakshmy. He made his debut as an actor and screen writer in the Lal Jose movie 'Rasikan'...
, Lena
Lena Abhilash
Lena Abhilash , is a Malayalam actress and a VJ . She is known for her contrasting roles in different Malayalam soaps, which otherwise is filled with tear-jerking female characters. She has acted in many films including Jayaraj's Sneham, Karunam and Shantam, Kochu Kochu Santhoshangal, Randam...
, K. P. A. C. Lalitha
K. P. A. C. Lalitha
Maheshwari Amma, better known by her stage name K.P.A.C. Lalitha, is a National Award winning Indian film and stage actress. She was the wife of late filmmaker Bharathan.-Biography:...
and Sukumari
Sukumari
Sukumari is an Indian film actress who has primarily acted in Malayalam and Tamil films. She has been acting since she was 10 years old and has acted in various roles. The total number of her films is presumed to be about two-thousand. In 2003, she was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of...
. Sreenivasan's character of a social worker (named Razak Kottekkad) has been heavily influenced by the real-life character named Shihab. Suraj Venjaramoodu, known for his comic roles, plays a negative character in the film. Several theatre artists from Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
and Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
are featured in the film. Shine Tom, who plays Basheer, has also served as an assistant director for the film.
The film was launched in October 2010 with its pre-shooting blessing held in Kochi
Kochi
-Places:* Kochi, a city in the state of Kerala, India, formerly known as Cochin* Kingdom of Cochin, a former feudal city-state on Malabar Coast, India** Fort Kochi, one of the three main urban components which constitute the present day city of Kochi, Kerala, India...
, filming began on 20 October in Dubai
Dubai
Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
. Almost 90 per cent of the film was shot in Dubai and other parts of United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...
, while the remaining parts were filmed in Ottappalam, Kerala. Though the film is set in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
it was not filmed there. Kamal had visited several labour camps in Saudi Arabia and had gathered information from a jail personnel to know more about the life of the people there. He also spoke to many Khaddamas who returned to Kerala. Kamal argues that his research made the film more realistic and convincing. Manoj Pillai, who has been an assistant of Santosh Sivan
Santosh Sivan
Santosh Sivan is an Indian cinematographer, film director, and producer who has worked in Malayalam, Kannada, Tamil, and Hindi cinema....
, an independent cinematographer for a few Malayalam films was the cameraman. Khaddama is perhaps the first Malayalam film to be shot extensively in a desert. Manoj Pillai says: "The desert is a difficult terrain to work on. It was stressful, but we managed it. And the footage looks nice. It is a testimony of the fantastic crew that we add"
The central character, Aswathi, appears in a black Pardah in major parts of the film. The costumes have been designed by Anil Kumar, while Pandiyan did the make up. Shafeer Sait, who has a long time association with Kamal, is the production controller. Suresh Kollam is the art director. Tapas Nayak, who was an assistant of H. Sridhar
H. Sridhar
H. Sridhar, was a sound engineer from India and known for his work with the Indian Musician A R Rahman.Sridhar was the Chief Audio Engineer at Media Artists. A mathematics graduate, with keen interest in electronics and formal music training, he started a professional sound engineering career in...
, completed the sound design.
Post-production
The film retains the title of K. U. Iqbal's feature published in Bhashaposhini. "Khaddama" (often spelt "Gaddama" or "Gadhama") is a colloquial version of the ArabicArabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
word Khadima ( "servant"). The name is generally used to address domestic workers in Arabian countries who come from other countries. Most of them are from North African countries, the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
and Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
. Indians are comparatively few, but most are from the Malabar region.
Kamal organised a special screening of the film on the first week of January. The screening was attended by several industry people including actresses Manju Warrier
Manju Warrier
Manju Warrier is an Indian film actress. She was among the popular lead actress in Malayalam cinema during the mid to late-1990s.She made her debut in Saakshyam...
and Samyuktha Varma
Samyuktha Varma
Samyuktha Varma , born November 26, 1982 is an award winning actress in Malayalam Movie Industry. She entered filmdom through the Malayalam movie Veendum Chila Veettukaryangal directed by Sathyan Anthikkad. Then she acted in several Malayalam feature films and bagged some awards...
. The preview was held at D.L.S. theatre, Kakkanad
Kakkanad
Kakkanad is a region in the city of Kochi, in the state of Kerala, India. This is the part of Kochi where much of its IT industry is based in. It is also the administrative headquarters of the District of Ernakulam ....
, Kochi
Kochi
-Places:* Kochi, a city in the state of Kerala, India, formerly known as Cochin* Kingdom of Cochin, a former feudal city-state on Malabar Coast, India** Fort Kochi, one of the three main urban components which constitute the present day city of Kochi, Kerala, India...
. The film received positive responses among those who attended the preview. After the show it was reported that, "Kavya was brilliant as the harassed Indian maid working in an Arab household".
Release and reception
The film was distributed by Murali Films. It had a limited release in about thirty theatres in Kerala on 4 February 2011. The film was hanticipated among both critics and cinema-goers, not only because of its theme but also due to the wide marketing strategy. It was the only Malayalam film released on the date and hence had no significant competition. The film was to be released in the Middle East on the same day, a big market for Malayalam films, but it was banned across the Middle East as the Censor Board rejected the film.Even though the film had a limited release it to became a box office winner. The film's fiftieth day celebration was held at the Avenue Centre, Kochi on 27 March. The function was attended by film directors Joshiy and Sibi Malayil
Sibi Malayil
Sibi Malayil is an Indian film director of Malayalam cinema best known for his melodramas of the 80s and 90s. Since the mid-1980s he has directed some 40 movies. Movies like Kireedam, Dasharatham, Thaniyavarthanam, His Highness Abdullah, Bharatham, and Akashadoothu defined the way Malayalam movies...
, producers Siyad Koker, Appachan
Appachan
Maliampurackal Chacko Punnoose, known as Navodaya Appachan is an Indian film producer, director, and entrepreneur. He is mainly involved in Malayalam cinema....
and Vyshakh Rajan, writer P. Sukumar, and politician V. M. Sudheeran
V. M. Sudheeran
V. M. Sudheeran , The former Speaker of Kerala Legislative Assembly and Health Minister, is an active social and political leader in Kerala and an active member of the Indian National Congress. He was born to V. S. Mama and Girija at a small village named Padiyam in Anthicad Panchayat of Thrissur...
, along with the cast and crew of the film. During the function V. M. Sudheeran opined that Khaddama was one of the best films of recent times and that he had congratulated Kamal for the bold movie soon after watching it.
Critical response
The film received generally favorable critical reviews and some applauded Khaddama as a realistic film. Kavya MadhavanKavya Madhavan
Kavya Madhavan is an Indian film actress who works in Malayalam cinema. She made her debut in Pookkalam Varavayi as a child artist. In 1999, she became a lead actress in Lal Jose's Chandranudikkunna Dikhil.-Background:...
's lead performance has been rated as one of the best in her career.
M. Ashitha of Deccan Herald
Deccan Herald
The Deccan Herald is a leading English-language daily newspaper distributed in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is published by the Printers Private Limited and has a number of editions in Bangalore, Hubli, Mysore, Mangalore and Gulbarga....
said, "Director Kamal makes convincing depiction of the obscure fate of poor Indian women in an alien land. Kavya excels in her role. Manoj Pillai's outstanding camerawork makes the film realistic."
S. Anandan of The Hindu
The Hindu
The Hindu is an Indian English-language daily newspaper founded and continuously published in Chennai since 1878. According to the Audit Bureau of Circulations, it has a circulation of 1.46 million copies as of December 2009. The enterprise employed over 1,600 workers and gross income reached $40...
commented, "Kamal's movie, on its part, attempts to catalogue the society's brutality meted out to Gulf Malayalees. The movie is a decent depiction of lives in exile in the Middle East. However, going by the accounts of Gulf deportees, what is shown is just the tip of the iceberg insofar as the agonies of the diasporic workers in the Gulf are concerned. Khaddama would have evoked a better response had its narrative been a little nuanced and punctuated with dark humour."
Paresh C. Palicha of Rediff.com
Rediff.com
Rediff.com India is a news, information, entertainment, and shopping portal. It was founded in 1996 as "Rediff On The NeT" and is headquartered in Mumbai, India with offices in New Delhi and New York City, USA....
gave the film three out of five stars, saying "Khaddama is one example where he [Kamal] deals with a subject that requires realistic treatment and he has come up on top."
The reviewer of Sify.com
Sify
Sify Technologies Limited is an Internet service provider established in 1998, based in Chennai, India.-Company profile:...
gave the film four out of five stars and stated, "Khaddama handles a different issue and it is indeed one that needs grave attention as well."
Nikhil Narayanan of Oneindia.in
Oneindia.in
Oneindia.in is an Indian online portal owned by Greynium Information Technologies Pvt. Ltd., which provides news updates, sports news, travel, entertainment, videos, and classifieds. Alexa Traffic Rank of Oneindia.in is ranked number 525 in the world and Google page rank of Oneindia.in is 7...
stated, "If you are unhappy with the lack of women-centric themes in Malayalam cinema, here's a reprieve. This movie belongs to Kavya Madhavan, who has brilliantly delivered the role portraying the hardships of a Malayalee maid in a Sheikh's house in Saudi Arabia."
Asianet
Asianet
Asianet Communications Limited is an Indian media conglomerate jointly owned by STAR TV and Jupiter Entertainment. Formed in 1991 and headquartered in the city of Thiruvananthapuram in the south Indian state of Kerala, the company owns several television channels including Asianet, the first...
's reviewer said, "All in all, 'Khaddama' is a quality offering from the master director, with a genuine upsetting story. The movie has plenty of faces that continue to haunt you even after the film has ended. This is a film for the discerning viewer who likes to go a little beyond the regular masala stereotype."
The reviews by Varthalokam, Mathrubhumi
Mathrubhumi
Mathrubhumi is a Malayalam language newspaper that is published from Kerala, India. Mathrubhumi was founded by K. P. Kesava Menon, an active volunteer in the Indian freedom struggle against the British.-History:...
, and Cinemajalakom were also favourable.
Awards and nominations
The film has received various awards and nominations. In the 2011 Kerala Film Critics Awards it became the biggest winner, with three awards for Best Film, Best Director and Best Actress. The film was selected as one of the six Malayalam films to compete for the National Film AwardsNational Film Awards
The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremony in India. Established in 1954, it is administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directorate of Film Festivals since 1973.Every year, a national panel...
. Madhavan was in the final round in the Best Actress category, but she lost to Mitalee Jagtap Varadkar and Saranya Ponvannan
Saranya Ponvannan
Saranya Ponvannan, is an Indian film actress, who has predominantly appeared in Tamil language films. Saranya made her debut in a lead role in Mani Ratnam's Nayagan and went on to play lead roles in a few films during the late 1980s...
. She won the Best Actress Award
Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress
The Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress winners:-References:**...
at the 2011 Kerala State Film Awards and Amrita-FEFKA Film Awards.
Accusation of plagiarism
A controversy regarding the film's plot originated when KozhikodeKozhikode
Kozhikode During Classical antiquity and the Middle Ages, Kozhikkode was dubbed the "City of Spices" for its role as the major trading point of eastern spices. Kozhikode was once the capital of an independent kingdom of the same name and later of the erstwhile Malabar District...
-based writer Salim Kurukkalakath claimed that the main story of the film was plagiarised from his story published in Madhyamam
Madhyamam
Madhyamam is a Malayalam daily newspaper published from Kerala, India, since 1987.. It was founded in 1987 by the initiatives of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind. It has 10 editions in India and its Gulf edition Gulf Madhyamam has 9 in the Middle East...
weekly on 20 October 2000. Salim says he had written the story while he was working in the Gulf and alleges that though he had written to Kamal on the issue in the initial stages of film making itself, Kamal had not replied. "It became clear after I saw the film", he says."
Music and soundtrack
The film's background score has been composed by M. JayachandranM. Jayachandran
M. Jayachandran is a film score composer, singer and musician in the Malayalam film industry. He has won Kerala State Film Awards for best music director in 2003, 2004, 2007, 2008 and 2010, maximum awards won by any music director. He also won the state award for best male singer in 2005...
, collaborating with Kamal for the first time after Perumazhakkalam
Perumazhakkalam
Perumazhakkalam is a 2004 Malayalam film directed by Kamal. The film stars Meera Jasmine, Kavya Madhavan, Dileep and Vineeth. The film was adapted to Hindi by Nagesh Kukunoor as Dor....
. The songs are composed by the duo Bennet Veetraag
Bennet Veetraag
Bennet Veetraag are an Indian music composer duo in the Malayalam film industry. The duo consists of guitarist-songwriter Bennet and singer-musician Veetraag.-Early years and career:Bennet and Veetraag hails from the city of Kozhikode, Kerala, India...
and feature lyrics by noted poet Rafeeque Ahammed.
The soundtrack album, released on Satyam Audios, contains five songs. Out of the five songs only two, "Naattuvazhiyorathe" and "Vidhuramee", are featured in the film as the track "Ariyumo" was a promotional song. The soundtrack received critical praise, particularly for the melody in the tracks.
External links
- Khaddama at the Malayalam Movie Database