MUST WATCH INDIAN MOVIES: my list (Malayalam-Kerala)

Very often Indian cinema is mistaken to be Hindi Cinema or Bollywood. Indian cinema is not a monolith, it is a panorama, a congregation or a confluence of many regional films each having its own language and culture. My attempt here is to provide a list of movies worth watching from each state/language of India. This list is not a parallel cinema exclusive and has movies worth watching for their commercial appeal too. The list is at times movies wise, director wise and actor wise in each language and state. Though some of the directors are not mentioned in the list, their movie/s is/are in the must watch list.

State: KERALA (language: MALAYALAM)

1.       DIRECTOR: ARAVINDAN

a)      VAASTUHAARA  

b)      CHIDAMBARAM

c)       KAANCHANA SITA
d)   POKKUVEYIL
e)    ESTHAPPAN
f)     UTTARAYANAM

2.       DIRECTOR: ADOOR GOPALAKRISHNAN

a)      KODIYETTAM

b)      VIDHEYAN

c)       ELIPPATHTHAAYAM
d)   MATHILUKAL
e)   NIZHALKUTHU
f)    SWAYAMVARAM
g)   MUKHAMUKHAM
h)   KATHAPURUSHAN
i)    NAALU PENNUNGAL

3.       DIRECTOR: PADMARAJAN

a)      NAMUKKU PAARKKAAN MUNTHIRITHOPPUKAL

b)      SEASON

c)       THOOVANATHUMPIKAL

d)      NJAAN GANDHARVAN
e)   PERUVAZHIYAMBALAM
f)    ORIDATHORU PHAYALVAAN
g)   MOONNAM PAKKAM

4.      DIRECTOR: BHARATHAN

a)      VAISHAALI

b)      THAAZHVAARAM

c)       ORU MINNAMINUNGINTE NURUNGUVATTAM

d)      AMARAM
e)   CHAMAYAM
f)    MARMARAM
g)   PRAYANAM
h)   VENKALAM

5.       DIRECTOR: LENIN RAJENDRAN

a)      SWATHI THIRUNAAL

b)      MEENAMAASATHILE SOORYAN

c)       DAIVATHINTE VIKRITHIKAL
d)   MAZHA
e)   RATHRI MAZHA

6.     DIRECTOR: LOHITADAS

a)      BHOOTHAKKANNAADI

b)      KANMADAM

c)       KASTHOORIMAAN

7.       DIRECTOR: SIBI MALAYIL

a)      HIS HIGHNESS ABDULLAH

b)      BHARATHAM

c)       KAMALADALAM

d)      DEVADOOTHAN

e)      KIREEDAM
f)    DASARATHAM

8.       DIRECTOR: M.T.VASUDEVAN NAIR

a)      NIRMAALYAM

b)      KADAVU

c)       ORU CHERU PUNCHIRI

9.   DIRECTOR: HARIHARAN

a)      ORU VADAKKAN VEERAGATHA

b)      SARGAM

c)       PAZHASSI RAJA
d)   PARINAYAM

10.   DIRECTOR: RENJITH

a)      THIRAKKATHA

b)      PRANCHIYETTAN AND THE SAINT

c)       INDIAN RUPEE
d)   NJAN
e)   KAYYOPPU

11.   DIRECTOR: I.V. SASI

a)      DEVASURAM

b)      AALKOOTTATHIL THANIYE

12.   DIRECTOR: BLESSY

a)      BHRAMARAM

b)      THANMAATHRA

c)       PRANAYAM
d)   KAAZHCHA

13.   DIRECTOR: SREENIVASAN

a)      CHINTHAAVISHTAYAAYA SHYAMALA

b)      VADAKKUNOKKI YANTHRAM

14.   DIRECTOR: SATHYAN ANTHIKKAD

a)      VARAVELPU

b)      NAADODIKKAATTU

c)       T.P.BALAGOPALAN M.A.

d)      GANDHI NAGAR 2^ND STREET

15.   DIRECTOR: T.V.CHANDRAN

a)      PONTHAN MAADA

b)      DANNY

c)       MANKAMMA

d)      KATHAVASHESHAN
e)   MANGAMMA

16.   DIRECTOR: ANJALI MENON

a)      MANJAADIKKURU

17.   DIRECTOR: R.SUKUMARAN

a)      PAADAMUDRA

b)      RAAJASHILPI

18.   DIRECTOR: JOHN ABRAHAM

a)      AGRAHAARATHIL KAZHUTHA

b)      AMMA ARIYAAN

19.   DIRECTOR: SHYAMAPRASAD

a)      AGNISAAKSHI

b)      ORE KADAL
c)   AKALE
20. DIRECTOR: K.G. GEORGE
a) SWAPNADANAM
b) IRAKAL
c) YAVANIKA
21. DIRECTOR: P.A.BACKER
a) MANIMUZHAKKAM

b) KABANI NADI CHUVANNAPPOL
22. DIRECTOR: K.S.SETHUMADHAVAN
a) OPPOL
b) MARUPAKKAM
c) ACHANUM BAPPAYUM
d) ODAYIL NINNU
23. DIRECTOR: SHAJI.N.KARUN
a) PIRAVI
b) KUTTY SRANK
c) VANAPRASTHAM
d) SWAHAM
24. DIRECTOR: P.T.KUNJU MUHAMMED
a) MAGRIB
b) GARSHOME
c) PARADESHI
25. DIRECTOR: P.N.MENON
a) OLAVUM THEERAVUM
b) GAYATHRI
c) KUTTYEDATHI

MUST WATCH FILMS:

1.       CHEMMEEN

2.       PERUMTHACHCHAN

3.       ORE THOOVAL PAKSHIKAL

4.       KUMARA SAMBHAVAM

5.       SARASAYYA

6.       SAYAHNAM

7.       KAZHAKAM

8.       PURUSHAARTHAM

9.       SESHAM

10.   IRUTTINTE AATHMAAVU

11.   AAKASHAGOPURAM

12.   NOTTAM

13.   VEETTILEKKULLA VAZHI

14.   PHOTOGRAPHER

15.   MANICHITHRATHAAZHU

16.   TRAFFIC

17.   GRANDMASTER

18.   VELLAANAKALUDE NAADU

19.   MARGAM

20.   CHAANAKYAN

21.   ATAYALANGAL

22.   AARAAM THAMPURAN

23.   VAATSALYAM

24.   ARABIKKATHA

25.   KERALA CAFÉ

26.   KEERTHI CHAKRA

27.   USTAAD HOTEL

28.   UDAYANAANU THAARAM

29.   PAITHRUKAM

30.   DRISHTAANTHAM

31.   AADAMINTE MAKAN ABU

32.   CELLULOID
33. DRISHYAM
34. APOTHECARY
35. NORTH 24 KAATHAM
36. THULAABHAARAM
37. YATHRA
38. SOORYA GAYATHRI
39. AYITHAM
40. CR No: 89
41. DRISHTANTHAM
42. GODFATHER
43. KARUNAM
44. PONNAPURAM KOTTA.
45. BHARGAVI NILAYAM
46. PAKSHE
47. MUKHAM
48. SWAROOPAM
49. NEYTHUKAARAN
50. UPPU
51. PERARIYATHAVAR
52. GADDAMA
53. GURU
54. BYARI
55.SAMAANTHARANGAL
56. THALAPPAVU
57. OZHIMURI
58. KALIYAATTAM
59. AYANAM
60. 101 CHODYANGAL
61. DESHADANAM
62. YODHA
63. ULSAVAPPITTENNU
64. ANNAYUM RASOOLUM
65. 1983
66. NADI (directed by Vincent)
67. ULLADAKKAM
68. AYALUM NJANUM THAMMIL
69. NEELAKUYIL
70. PUNARADHIVASAM

POPULAR ACTORS: MOHANLAL, MAMMOOTTY

MOHANLAL’S MUST WATCH:

1.       VAANAPRASTHAM

2.       SPADIKAM

3.       KAMALADALAM

4.       BHRAMARAM

5.       DEVASURAM

6.       IRUVAR (TAMIL)

7.       THANMAATHRA

8.       KIREEDAM

9.       NO.20 MADRAS MAIL
10. THENMAAVIN KOMBATH
11. KILUKKAM
12. SADAYAM
13. HIS HIGHNESS ABDULLAH
14. KAALAPANI

MAMMOOTTY’S MUST WATCH:

1.       ORU VADAKKAN VEERAGATHA

2.       VIDEHYAN

3.       BHOOTHAKKANNADI

4.       AMARAM

5.       PONTHAN MAADA

6.       THANIYAAVARTHANAM

7.       VAATSALYAM

8.       SUKRUTHAM

                                                                            ---- by Santhosh Kumar Kana

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