Paradesi (transl. Foreigner) is a 2007 Indian Malayalam-language drama film written and directed by P. T. Kunju Muhammed. It was produced by Antony Perumbavoor under the company Aashirvad Cinemas. Mohanlal plays Valiyakaththu Moosa, in three stages of his life, between the ages of 35 and 80. It also features Swetha Menon, Lakshmi Gopalaswamy, Padmapriya Janakiraman, Jagathy Sreekumar, and Siddique in significant roles.
The film portrays the issue of Indian citizens who left the country before the partition of India in search of job, mostly to Arabia, and happened to reach Pakistan, and then when returned to the homeland, happened to be holding a Pakistani passport, and now is forced by the Indian authorities to leave the nation to Pakistan, which even the Pakistani authorities won't allow.[1]
Plot
Valiyakaththu Moosa is an Indian Muslim who moves from the Malabar region of Kerala, India to Karachi, Pakistan during the British Raj in search of a job. Post-partition, he returns from Pakistan and settles down in Malappuram, Kerala. This man, who lives as a true Indian, doesn't get his Indian passport and thus an Indian identity in the official sense, even after 50 years of Independence.
Indian police harass him and his neighbours in a similar situation as Pakistani spies. The film has Mohanlal playing the character in three stages of his life, between the ages of 35 and 80
Cast
- Mohanlal as Valiyakathu Moosa
- Siddique as Musthafa Hamza
- Swetha Menon as Aamina
- Jagathy Sreekumar as Abdul Rahman
- Lakshmi Gopalaswami as Khadeeja
- Padmapriya Janakiraman as Usha, journalist
- T. G. Ravi as Usman
- Madhupal as Adv. Pradeep
- Vijayaraghavan as Koch Ousep
- VK Sreeraman as Adv. Ramakrishnan
- Cochin Haneefa as Head Constable
- Bharath Gopi
- Nilambur Ayesha
- Suresh Krishna as Ravi Tharakan
- Irshad as Prakashan
- Sona Nair
- Sreenath
- Ambika Mohan as Valiykath Moosa's mother
- Zeenath
- Manka Mahesh
- Rema Devi
- Deepika Mohan
Production
The film was produced by Antony Perumbavoor under the banner of Aashirvad Cinemas. The locations of the film included Ottappalam in Kerala and Rajasthan.
Music
The music was composed by Ramesh Narayan and Shahabaz Aman.
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Artist(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Aananda Kanneerin" | Rafeeq Ahammed | Ramesh Narayan | Sujatha Mohan Manjari | |
| 2. | "Thattam Pidichu" | Rafeeq Ahammed | Ramesh Narayan | Sujatha Mohan | |
| 3. | "Thattam Pidichu (Unplugged)" | Rafeeq Ahammed | Ramesh Narayan | Sujatha Mohan | |
| 4. | "Ya Dhuni Dhuni" | Rafeeq Ahammed | Shahabaz Aman | M. G. Sreekumar Vineeth Sreenivasan |
Release
The film was released on 24 October 2007.[3]
Awards
- National Film Award for Best Make-up Artist - Pattanam Rasheed
- Best Actor - Mohanlal
- Best Story - P. T. Kunju Muhammed
- Best Makeup Artist - Pattanam Rasheed
- Special Jury Award - Jagathy Sreekumar
- Best Dubbing Artist - Hafsath, Zeenath
References
- ^ "The Hindu : Friday Review Thiruvananthapuram / On Location : Citizen sans a country". www.hindu.com. Archived from the original on 11 October 2007. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
- ^ "Paradesi (2007)".
- ^ "Ramzan releases - Sify.com". Sify. Archived from the original on 11 October 2007. Retrieved 9 August 2022.