Valour on show

“It's steeped in history but it's quite unlike a historical movie. There's never a dull moment in the film,” is the general  perception of people who've watched the film and yearn to go back to the theatres for a second dekho.

The film traces the struggles of the Kerala king Pazhassi Raja who revolted against the British. His contributions are little known or are virtually unknown to the world but his picture in the Parliament House stands testimony to all those people who laid down their life fighting for a free India. "That Pazhassi Raja, along with a band of adivasis took the British head on and attempted to drive them out of the Indian soil has been recorded in the William Logan’s Malabar manual. I thought he must be given his due just like Mangal Pandey and the sepoy mutiny," director Hariharan told Metrolife.

Hariharan has shot the film in the dense forests of Madekeri in Coorg and in Andhra Pradesh. Pazhassi Raja played by Mammootty along with Thilakal Chandu, the adivasi leader, essayed by Manoj K Jayan blend their expertise in weaponry and fight the British.

"This is not a documentary but an honest effort to enlighten the younger generation and take them back in time. It has all the elements of a commercial film and doesn't lose out on entertainment," Hariharan says and adds: “it is an attempt to provoke one's thoughts and stir up the patriotic fervour in every Indian. The price that people paid to win us the freedom from the clutches of British rule must be known and shown to the younger generation and what better way to do it than through films."

Through Pazhassi Raja one gets to recall the struggle, pain and sacrifice that went in to free a nation. In today's India, every leader works for his or her own narrow political gains, thinks Hariharan. “How to make more money through illegal means and siphon off the same, are the things that politicians are busy doing. No leader works selflessly to secure a nation and its people but works only to retain power which gives them more room for corruption," concludes Hariharan.  The film has been remade into four other languages.