ULLOZHUKKU ( INFLOW )

 

 Kuttanadu, in Kerala, is a small village surrounded by picturesque backwaters that often feature on lists of “India’s most beautiful spots”. The story is of the two natives, Leelamma and Anju who live here. The less said of the living, the better. They are stranded on their island home in the backwaters with flood waters rising, and the country boat is their only link to the outside world. 

Anju and her mother-in-law Leelamma are in a life not of their choosing. One has come to terms with it, tempered by the struggles of family life, and even yearns to protect that way of living, while the other still has some spirit left to fight her way out of it.

While Leelamma reminisces about her joyful early years with her family, Anju is still adjusting to her new home in the backwaters of Kuttanad and coping with her husband, Thomas Kutty's illness. Her only solace is when she can leave the house to meet Rajeev, her fiancé. However, she becomes extremely distressed when she discovers that she is pregnant with her lover's child. To make matters worse, her husband's illness worsens, and he passes away.

As the two women struggle with their turmoil - one having lost her son and the other carrying a baby that isn’t her husband’s - they are pushed into a situation where they are almost fighting for their survival. As a result, they start turning on each other.

Anju discovered that Leelamma had not been honest about Thomaskutty's illness when the marriage proposal was made. She felt like a victim of her mother-in-law's selfishness. Anju also realized that her parents had wanted to marry her off against her wishes to put an end to her relationship with Rajeev once and for all.

Leelamma, grieving the loss of her stillborn baby, sees the child as the only ray of light in her life. She is determined to bequeath her house and properties to Anju and to any future children Anju may have.

But one doesn't need to be taught to see things from Anju's point of view by making the other person look bad. Sometimes, there's no need for justification for why people behaved the way they did. She finally tells Leelamma that the child in her womb is not her son's! They were just two women driven by love. Will the two women learn to look beyond betrayal and accept that true love is about forgiveness?

Leelama and her daughter-in-law Anju have lived for too long on a foundation of lies. The man who connects them both lies in a mortuary, and they must wait for the floodwaters to subside to bury him. As the wait continues, the intricate web of lies around them is exposed, unraveling the essence of human emotions and relationships. 

Relative right and wrong hold no significance in the ebb and flow of human emotions and thoughts. The trajectory of the human mind's ebb and flow is so unpredictable, regardless of its outward calm.

Meanwhile, Rajeev, who is well aware of Anju's situation, reveals his true nature. It seems that greed has taken precedence over his love for her. He encourages her to expedite the property transaction so that they can settle outside the control of their respective families.

It can be said that Anju's emotions are more complex than Leelamma's. They do not follow a linear path and tend to build up like steam in a pressure cooker.

Once the body of her son was prepared for the final journey, Leelamma only had to offer frankincense at her son's gravesite. Drained of energy after years of weeping, she had become speechless.

Anju struggles to face the future following her mother-in-law, either out of love for Leelamma or a sense of defiance in light of the betrayal of her fiancee.

Yes, you are right. The story mentioned above has been adapted into a captivating film titled "Ullozhukku," which was recently screened in theaters.

Urvashi, as Leelamma, and Parvathy Thiruvothu, as Anju, deliver outstanding performances that are the backbone of the film. "Ullozhukku" is a slow-building drama that offers a character study of Leelamma and Anju. It provides different perspectives and leaves questions of right and wrong open for the audience to explore.

Notably, the film explores the emotional dimensions of its characters and delves deeply into their socio-religious backgrounds and the unique geography of their land.

Movie: Ullozhokku

Directed by: Christo Tomy

Starring: Urvashi (Leelamma), Parvathy Thiruvothu, (Anju ) Prashant Murali (Thomas Kutty), Arjun Radhakrishnan Rajeev), Alencier Lopez (Father of Anju)  and Jaya Kurup (Sister of Leelamma)

Shyam's music, and particularly Shehnad Jalal's camerawork, take it up a notch.

NB: In 2024, Smt. Urvashi won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress, for the portrayal of Leelamma in"Ullozhukku:

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