The Philosophy Of Premam - An Introduction

 

Occasionally, there comes a film which isn't your standard uninspired romantic comedy (a genre I passionately despise), and far from being emotionally manipulative, these films manage to construct a mirror to our bittersweet growing years. Such a film was Premam, a 2015 Malayalam coming-of-age film directed by Alphonse Puthren and starring Nivin Pauly as the protagonist along with a trio of female leads (Anupama Parameshwaran, Sai Pallavi and Madonna Sebastian). For a film which branded itself as "the second film in the history of world cinema with nothing fresh', it surprisingly struck an immense chord with movie-goers all over India and achieved instant cult status. The movie was an instant hit, winning unanimous critical acclaim and became the highest-grossing Malayalam film till then. But what has Premam to do with my blog?

It's pretty common to see Hollywood films dissected by YouTubers like Nerdwriter1, Every Frame A Painting and Wisecrack. The trend has also reached Bollywood, with the likes of Cinema Beyond Entertainment and KRK (giggle). Film analysis is not about patronizing viewers; you can enjoy movies without criticizing it. I probably dissect films to absurdity. The purpose of criticism, however, is to offer new perspectives to view the films in. So it is quite disheartening to see Malayalam cinema not get the same treatment, especially since the industry is founded on a plethora of acclaimed literary figures, and has arguably, in my opinion, produced some of the finest works India has to offer to the world.  And so due to no one's demands, I've taken it to myself to criticize Malayalam films occasionally. And to begin with, I'll analyze Premam through a critical psychological and philosophical lens. What is it about Premam and its characters that transformed it into the cult film it is today? The rabbit hole goes much deeper than you think.

Fair disclaimer though, much of this will be my personal interpretation of the film, and might not even be what Puthren intended. Also, I don't necessarily endorse any view I've mined on, and this is just an exercise in film criticism.

Cheers.