Sreenivasan, who carved a niche for himself in Mollywood, passed away on Saturday. The actor, director, and screenwriter will be remembered as someone who elevated middlebrow movies to another level. His movies reflected the reality of Kerala society as it is.
An example is when His character in the film Nadodikattu says to Daasan played by Mohanlal: 'Everything will happen when the time is right, Daasa.' This and many of his classic dialgoues would stay with the Malayalee filmgoers in the years to come.Nadodikkattu tells the tale of two unemployed men. The movie was released almost 40 years ago, but still reflects the dreams and aspirations of youths in Kerala who migrate to other places in search of jobs.
There is another cracker of a dialogue in....' Don't utter a word about Poland,' retorts Sreenivasan's character. It was a satirical look at the left-leaning Malayalee intellectual. This line reflected the political reality where leaders in Kerala would heavily debate on international issues but failed to talk about issues in Kerala.
Later, he stepped into the shoes of direction and made two masterpieces that critiqued the fragile male ego. While Vadakkunokkiyanthram dealt with male inferiority complex, Chinthavishtayaya Shyamala shows male escapism. In both movies, he shows that it is often the partners who have to face the consequences of the actions of their husbands.
Sreenivasan was a great actor who could make the audience laugh at his wit but also think about the moral dilemmas faced by the character. Finding humour in the common man's problems was what made him great. With his passing, Malayalam cinema loses not just a prolific artist but a conscience keeper—one who consistently used humour and storytelling to question society, politics and human relationships. Many actors, politicians and leaders have reacted to his death.