Screenplay
The life of Thatri, wife of the elderly Raman Namboodiri of Kuriyedath Mana in Thrissur, who questioned the judiciary and patriarchy of her time, had far-reaching consequences that are relevant even today. Smarthavicharam was a kind of inquisition that examined the moral conduct of women from the Namboodiri community. The last trial of its kind ordered by the king of erstwhile Kochi, the Smarthavicharam of Thatri in 1905 looked into allegations of adultery against her.
Director
The life of Thatri, wife of the elderly Raman Namboodiri of Kuriyedath Mana in Thrissur, who questioned the judiciary and patriarchy of her time, had far-reaching consequences that are relevant even today. Smarthavicharam was a kind of inquisition that examined the moral conduct of women from the Namboodiri community. The last trial of its kind ordered by the king of erstwhile Kochi, the Smarthavicharam of Thatri in 1905 looked into allegations of adultery against her.
Director
The film focuses on a very conservative Namboodiri family in a very regressive social milieu. Ishti centres around two main characters, a 70-year-old Ramavikraman Namboodiri, who is a Vedic scholar who preserves the fire from a Somayagam to light his funeral pyre, and Sreedevi, his young, third wife. Sreedevi stands up against orthodoxy. She manages to inspire her husband’s son from another marriage to read and write. The conflict between these characters and those who revolve around their lives is what the film is generally about. It then also becomes a strong comment on the attempt to balance worldly desires and the rigidity of caste and tradition.
Writer
The film focuses on a very conservative Namboodiri family in a very regressive social milieu. Ishti centres around two main characters, a 70-year-old Ramavikraman Namboodiri, who is a Vedic scholar who preserves the fire from a Somayagam to light his funeral pyre, and Sreedevi, his young, third wife. Sreedevi stands up against orthodoxy. She manages to inspire her husband’s son from another marriage to read and write. The conflict between these characters and those who revolve around their lives is what the film is generally about. It then also becomes a strong comment on the attempt to balance worldly desires and the rigidity of caste and tradition.
