The humour of Ratheesh Balakrishnan Poduval is one of a kind. No one conjures up comical situations like him in Malayalam cinema today. So one feels great joy when the immensely gifted writer-director gets rightly acknowledged for delivering a satirical masterpiece in the form of Nna Thaan Case Kodu (NTCK), in which an ordinary man — well, a thief, to be precise — takes on the system when faced with a strange dilemma.
NTCK stood out by winning in seven categories, the most number won by a film in this year’s Kerala State Film Awards. In the main categories, aside from winning Best Film with Popular and Aesthetic Value and Best Actor (Male, Special Jury Mention) for Kunchacko Boban, NTCK fetched a Best Original Screenplay award for Ratheesh, who previously won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Debut Director for his work in 5.25.
Speaking to TNIE from his hometown Payyanur, where he is currently shooting the NTCK spin-off, Sureshinteyum Sumalathayudeyum Hridayaharithamaya Pranayakatha, Ratheesh says what gladdens his heart more than his own win is the “fact the technicians in his film got acknowledged”, particularly in some of the most important departments, such as sound. “I have a special fondness for the sound department — after production design, it’s this department on which I rely the most. It was a key factor in all my films so far. So it’s great to know that Vipin Nair has won for his work.”
Ratheesh also finds it incredible how “Dawn Vincent (composer) came up with the final background score after changing it a few times. His work is something we greatly admire.”
The filmmaker laments the absence of a category to reward production designers as it’s an area in the film that, as any discerning viewer can see, is immaculate. “We strove hard to create a special world in this film,” he says, adding that he wishes the film also won for the editing skills of Manoj Kannoth.
As a film buff, it’s surprising to see a strongly political satire getting picked up for awards consideration. Ratheesh is glad to see his film getting accepted despite the fact, and so are we.