Aesthetic vs popular1 min read
Reading Time: < 1 minuteThe sight of the long queues spilling into the streets outside cinema halls wasn’t uncommon in the year that went by.
As usual, movie-loving Malayalis welcomed some films with great enthusiasm while the others went unnoticed.
But the just announced state awards for excellence in cinema reinforced a trend: what people like does not click with the jury, made up of intelligentsia.
Aadaminte Makan Abu, which was adjudged the best film both at the state as well as the national level, may have been a deserving choice but nobody has seen the film so far.
Manu Radhakrishnan, a film enthusiast based in Kochi, says: “You cannot blame anyone for the jury’s choice. When people hear it is an award-winning film, they seem reluctant to go and watch it in a theatre. They do not find such movies attractive. What the mass audience likes are films like China Town but you cannot say such a film deserves an award. I liked the movie Elsamma Enna Aankutty but this film again isn’t award worthy. Filmmakers should market their movies in the right manner. How else would the audience know if a movie is good if it isn’t properly marketed?”
