Thampu
Encyclopedia
Thampu is a highly acclaimed Malayalam film written and directed by G. Aravindan
. Bharath Gopi
, Nedumudi Venu
, V. K. Sriraman, Jalaja
the artistes of the Great Chitra Circus form the cast. The film deals with the roving street circus of Kerala. It is shot in black and white in a direct documentary mode.
Across a dirt road, the circus truck comes to a village. The tent goes up. Schoolboys run to the ten. Village women come and watch an acrobat roll a hoop across a tightrope. A lion leaps from the edge of one stool - across darkness - on to another stool. A gap-toothed old woman gazes at a goat on a tight rope; her eyes are wide with curiosity.
For three days the cicrus makes small ripples in the life of this village. Municipal permits are required. At a toddy shop, a soldier befriends the circus strongman; a pump attendant sits on a rock each day watching a village girl bathe and dry her hair. The dwarf brings back to the circus a watermelon larger than his head.
In the film's three days, we, the viewers, learn the geography of the village: the banyan treewith leaves like transparent film, the shining water, the light on the sand at sunset. When the circus leaves the village, it leaves us. The narrative says: The circus comes and leaves; life goes on.
G. Aravindan
Govindan Aravindan who was popularly known as G. Aravindan was a national award winning film director, screenwriter, musician and cartoonist from Kerala, India. He was known for his unorthodox way of film-making; he changed his cinematic forms consistently and experimented in story telling without...
. Bharath Gopi
Bharath Gopi
V. Gopinathan Nair, popularly known as Bharath Gopi was an Indian film actor, producer, and director. He was one of the first actors to be associated with the New Wave cinema movement in Kerala....
, Nedumudi Venu
Nedumudi Venu
Nedumudi Venu is a popular Malayalam film actor from Kerala, India. He has also written screenplays and has directed one film.- Early life :...
, V. K. Sriraman, Jalaja
Jalaja
Jalaja is an actress in Malayalam film who was active during the 1970s and 1980s. She had won Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress and Filmfare Award for Best Actress in 1981 for the movie Venal directed by Lenin Rajendran....
the artistes of the Great Chitra Circus form the cast. The film deals with the roving street circus of Kerala. It is shot in black and white in a direct documentary mode.
Plot
Besides a long glittering river some men raise a pole. A tent balloons up. Where there was wide sand and the sound of water lapping, there is now a truck, chairs, hoops, stools, ropes, goats, a lioness, a pair of fat girls, some bicycles, and an old man with a philosopher's dignity, putting on white paste.Across a dirt road, the circus truck comes to a village. The tent goes up. Schoolboys run to the ten. Village women come and watch an acrobat roll a hoop across a tightrope. A lion leaps from the edge of one stool - across darkness - on to another stool. A gap-toothed old woman gazes at a goat on a tight rope; her eyes are wide with curiosity.
For three days the cicrus makes small ripples in the life of this village. Municipal permits are required. At a toddy shop, a soldier befriends the circus strongman; a pump attendant sits on a rock each day watching a village girl bathe and dry her hair. The dwarf brings back to the circus a watermelon larger than his head.
In the film's three days, we, the viewers, learn the geography of the village: the banyan treewith leaves like transparent film, the shining water, the light on the sand at sunset. When the circus leaves the village, it leaves us. The narrative says: The circus comes and leaves; life goes on.
Major awards
- National Film Award for Best Direction
- National Film Award for Best Feature Film in MalayalamNational Film Award for Best Feature Film in MalayalamThe National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Malayalam winners:...
- Kerala State Film Award for Best DirectionKerala State Film Award for Best DirectorThe Kerala State Film Award for Best Director winners:-References:**...
- Kerala State Film Award for Second Best FilmKerala State Film Award for Second Best FilmThe Kerala State Film Award for Second Best Film winners:- Third Best Film :The Kerala State Film Award for Third Best Film winners:-References:**...
External links
- Revisiting Thampu - The Economic TimesThe Economic TimesThe Economic Times is an English-language Indian daily newspaper published by the Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd.. The Economic Times was started in 1961. It is the most popular and widely read financial daily in India, read by more than 8 lakh people...