Sthalathe Pradhana Payyans

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Sthalathe Pradhana Payyans
Directed by	Shaji Kailas
Written by	Renji Panicker
Produced by	Joemon Ramdan Poyyeri
Starring	Jagadish Narendra Prasad Siddique Suresh Gopi (Cameo)
Cinematography	Anandakuttan
Edited by	Bhoominathan
Music by
Release date	1993 (1993)
Country	India
Language	Malayalam

Sthalathe Pradhana Payyans is 1993 Malayalam-language political thriller by Shaji Kailas and written by Renji Panicker. This film revolved around the current affairs of Kerala in those days and was a huge sensational hit. It severely criticized the political establishments and exposed the unholy equations of politics, whereby inviting strong opposition from different political quarters. Jagadish did the main role of the common man who accidentally ends up being the home minister of the state. This film is considered as a turning point in the career of Jagadish, who was until then hooked up in comedy roles. Suresh Gopi did a cameo role in the film.

Plot[]

Lying on the suburbs of the city, the Hindustan Colony is a typical Indian colony, populated mainly by middle-class and lower-class people who are busy with their own day-to-day issues. The problem of drinking water had been a serious issue, which has been neglected by the ruling class for several years for their political gains. Gopalakrishnan (Jagadish), a resident of the colony, is an educated youth, who works as a newspaper delivery man. Along with his group of friends, Gopalakrishnan is active in all social and cultural activities. He is in love with Gowri, daughter of Poomukhath Kurup (Oduvil Unnikrishnan), a corrupt business contractor, who happens to be his uncle too. Kurup has been instrumental in the death of Gopalakrishnan's father, giving rise to their bittern enmity.

State politics is in great flux turmoil at this time with group factionalism and party infighting. The chief minister (Janardhanan) is in all efforts to retain power, despite strong opposition from within his own party. Kunhikannan Nambiar (Narendra Prasad), a seasoned and cunning politician, is all set to take up power by usurping the chief minister's position. The sudden death of Marukandam Madhavan, a minister, after being forced into a swimming pool by his daughter, demands a re-election, which is crucial for the ministry to survive. Kunhikanan Nambiar uses his political clout and demands the vacated seat for one of his loyalists. The chief minister had to reluctantly agree with Nambiar to choose the candidate for the seat under a set of conditions. Nambiar, then decides to field Gopalakrishnan, who enjoys a strong influence among the people, on request of the party workers from the Hindustan Colony. Gopalakrishnan, who has no political experience, thus becomes a candidate with the support of his friends and wins the election with a stunning majority. But Nambiar doesn't ends his game with this. In the party meeting, Nambiar argues for a ministry and makes Gopalakrishnan the home minister of the state. Nambiar, a politician with a lethal mindset and mysterious underworld connections, wanted the home ministry in his hands to ensure the easy flow of weapons through the state.

But shocking him, Gopalakrishnan starts performing in his own capacity, thereby scattering the plans of Nambiar. Gopalakrishnan wins the heart of the chief minister, when he announces a free policing system and cleansing law and order. Mohammed Iqbal (Siddique), a young, dynamic police officer, is assigned the task of cleaning up the capital city, who arrests the goons of Nambiar, annoying him to the best. His order to release the goons is ignored by the Minister, who also prevents the plans to ignite communal violence in the city. But Nambiar decides to start a revolt from Hindustan Colony itself. His plan to divide the people of the Hindustan Colony into communal lines shows results, which creates minor scuffles in the peaceful colony. Subair (Suresh Gopi), the childhood friend of Gopalakrishnan, who is on leave from the army, tries to mediate and settle issues. Several temples and mosques are now raided by police on special order from the home minister, where by several deadly weapons, including guns and bombs, are found by police. This issue rocks the state.

Nambiar masterminds a huge communal violence in the city, mainly at Hindustan Colony. In the riots, the goons of Nambiar set fire to several houses, and rape several women, including Subair's sister. Subair, in an attempt to save her, is killed. The next morning, during his visit to the colony, Gopalakrishnan faces a severe protest from the people, including his dear ones, who accuse him of being a mass murderer. Gopalakrishnan resigns, but the chief minister does not approve of his resignation. He asks Gopalakrishnan to show his power at this moment by exposing the real culprits in front of society. Gopalakrishnan, along with a mob, raids the stores and garages of Nambiar, seizing several explosives. The mob goes violent and attacks Nambiar and sets him on fire along with his criminal partners.

Cast[]

Theatrical Response[]

Upon release, Sthalathe Pradhan Payyans broke several records in collections and completed 150 days in major centers.^[1] This film took both Shaji Kailas and Renji Panicker to new heights. This film got released within weeks after the Ayodhya issue and Mumbai communal riots, and the similar scenes, when shown on screen, created a sensation in the state.

References[]

External links[]

• Sthalathe Pradhana Payyans at IMDb
• Sthalathe Pradhana Payyans at Oneindia.in