Kaalapani

For other uses, seeKalapani (disambiguation).

For the caste taboo, seeKala pani (taboo).

Kaalapaani
Poster
Directed by	Priyadarshan
Screenplay by	T. Damodaran Priyadarshan
Story by	Priyadarshan
Produced by	Mohanlal R. Mohan(co-producer)
Starring	Mohanlal Prabhu Tabu Amrish Puri
Cinematography	Santosh Sivan
Edited by	N. Gopalakrishnan
Music by	Ilaiyaraaja
Production companies	Pranavam Arts Shogun Films(in association with)
Distributed by	Pranamam Pictures Shogun Films Amitabh Bachchan Corporation(Hindi)
Release date	6 April 1996(1996-04-06)
Running time	180 minutes
Country	India
Language	Malayalam
Budget	₹2.50crore

Kaalapaani(transl. Black Water) is a 1996 IndianMalayalam-languageepichistorical dramafilm written byT. Damodaranand directed byPriyadarshan.Set in 1915, the film focuses on the lives of Indianindependence activistsincarcerated in theCellular Jail(orKālā Pānī) inAndaman and Nicobar Islandsduring theBritish Raj.Theensemble castincludesMohanlal,Prabhu,Tabu,Amrish Puri,Nedumudi Venu,Sreenivasan,Tinnu Anand,Annu Kapoor,Alex Draper,Sankaradi,andVineeth.The film was produced by Mohanlal forPranavam Artsin association with R. Mohan'sShogun Films.

The film is about the lives of prisoners inBritish Indiawho are brought to Kālā Pānī. The nameKalapaniis derived from the mode of imprisonment in British India.Ilaiyaraajacomposed the music, the cinematography was bySantosh Sivan,and the editing by N. Gopalakrishnan. The film introducedDolby Stereointo Malayalam cinema. It was made on a budget of₹2.50 crore, making it the costliest Malayalam film made until then.

Kaalapaaniwas released on 6 April 1996 in 450 theaters worldwide, which was the largest release for any Indian film until then. The film is now regarded as one of the classics inMalayalam cinema.Originally made in Malayalam, the film was dubbed and released inHindiasSaaza-E-Kaalapani,TamilasSiraichalai,and inTeluguasKaala Pani.Amitabh Bachchanbought the Hindi dubbing rights, besides narrating the prologue for the Hindi version. The film won fourNational Film Awards,including the awards forBest Art Direction(Sabu Cyril),Best Special Effects(S. T. Venky), andBest Cinematography(Santosh Sivan). The film also won sevenKerala State Film Awards.

Plot

In 1965, G. S. Sethu of theIndian Armygoes toRoss Island,Kaalapaani to find the whereabouts of his aunt Parvathi's husband Govardhan Menon, who has been sent to jail in 1916 during the period ofBritish rule.In an old room containing record of prisoners held at the jail, Sethu comes across Govardhan's records and learns his story.

Govardhan, a doctor and Indian nationalist, is wrongly accused of bombing a train carrying 55 people, including British officials. On his wedding day with Parvathi, he is deported to a cellular jail atPort Blair,Andaman and Nicobar Islands.There, hundreds of Indian prisoners are incarcerated in the cellular jail, including leading participants of the independence movement.

David Berry is a sadistic jailor who is ofIrishdescent, while Len Hutton is a kindhearted English doctor.Savarkaris incarcerated and tries his best to keep the spirit of the prisoners going despite unbelievable torture.

A meticulous plan to escape from jail is formed by 40 prisoners under the leadership of 3 people. However, Kanaran reports the matter to the British authorities. The court orders the 3 leaders to be hanged until death and the others to be punished in a minor fashion. However, as per the order of Mirza Khan, the other people are also shot to death.

Parvathi keeps waiting for Govardhan to come back. Due to Len's efforts, the government decides to investigate the matter of the torture meted out to the prisoners. 14 people are ordered to be released. One of them is Mukundan, Govardhan's friend. David and the jail warden Mirza Khan hatch a plan to incite a prison riot and shoot down 13 prisoners while they are escaping. Mukundan refuses to escape and is taken on the pretext of meeting the Chief Commissioner, and is shot and killed. Seeing Mukundan's dead body, Govardhan throws down David from one of the towers and kills Mirza Khan by strangling him. Govardhan is hanged to death.

All this is shown in intermittent flashbacks. Sethu, after knowing Govardhan has already been hanged to death 45 years ago, decides to not tell the truth to his aunt as her wait of 50 years would have been in vain. The film ends with Sethu lying to her that he met Govardhan and talked to him about her, indicating she will never come to know about Govardhan's death and will keep waiting for him for the rest of her life.

Cast

• Mohanlalas Dr. Govardhan Menon / Unni
• Prabhuas Mukundan Iyengar, a revolutionary who wanted avenge British officer Barrington for killing locals.
• Tabuas Parvathi / Parvathikutty, Dr.Govardhan's lover and later wife
• Amrish Purias Jailer Mirza Khan, an Afghan jailer who is a companion of David Barrie.
• Vineethas G. Sethu, Dr.Govardhan's nephew who is in the Indian Army
• Alex Draper as Jailer David Barrie, a sadist and cruel jailer in Kalapani.
• John Kolvenbachas Dr. Len Hutton, a kind-hearted doctor.
• Annu KapoorasVinayak Damodar SavarkarLeader of the prisoners who demanded better treatment and rights for the prisoners
• Sankaradias Kunju Muhammad Musaliar, an influential Muslim prisoner who advocated for Hindu-Muslim unity
• Nedumudi Venuas Sreekandan Nair, Govardhan's maternal uncle, who was a local chieftain and a loyalist to the British Rule
• Delhi Ganeshas Pandiyan, a prisoner who have done many nationalistic activities who attempted to escape from prison, later he were sentenced to death.
• Sreenivasanas Moosa, a prisoner and a spy of Mirza Khan who instigated communal riots in the prison
• Cochin Haneefaas Ahmed Kutty, a kind hearted and patriot guard in the jail
• Maniyanpilla Rajuas Nair, an official in the Andaman & Nicobar administration of independent India
• Tinnu Anandas Ram Lakhan, a Hindu prisoner who was tortured by force feeding non vegetarian food and humanfaeces
• Govind Menon as Parmanand, a prisoner
• S.R. Veeraraghavan as Achyuthan, a prisoner
• Sreenathas Satyasheelan, a Prisoner
• Ajayan Adoor as a Prisoner
• Suma Jayaram as Sreekandan Nair's daughter, who was jealous of Parvathi falling in love with Govardhan
• Tom Alteras British Chief Commissioner of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Province
• Kozhikode Narayanan Nairas Naanu Nair, Parvathi's father and Sreekandan Nair's assistant
• Poojappura Ravias Nampoothiri, who wanted to marry Parvathi
• Antony Perumbavooras Mukundan's friend and accomplice
• Kanya Bharathias Mukundan's sister

Production

Development

Director Priyadarshan co-wrote the screenplay with screenwriter,T. Damodaran.The basis for the story were existing accounts of life in cellular jail, particularly excerpts from biographies of political leaders of the Indian Independence Movement. Most of these excerpts covered the ruthless routine of prisoners in jail, under the command of Jailer David Barry, Major James Pattinson Walker and Petty officer Mirza Khan.

Pre-production

While thePre-World War Iportswere recreated on the Andaman Islands, several huge sets were built on a 1.5 acres space in Murugalaya Studio,Chennaito replicate theCellular Jail.In Madras, the sets of Cellular Jail cost about Rs 12 lakh to build on 1.5 acres at the Murugalaya Studio. Apparently, director Priyadarshan was adamant and determined to be faithful to the details of the era. He says: "The Andamans had not seen a horse in 20 years. We had to carry four horses there at a cost of about Rs 3 lakh. When the filming was over, we presented them to the Andamans administration."Prior to the making of the film,Prabhuhad broken his knee and during his recovery phase, put on considerable weight. In order to accommodate his physique into the script, Priyadarshan altered the character to make him eat constantly in the film.

Filming

The budget of the film,₹2.5 crore(equivalent to₹14 crore or US$1.6 million in 2023), was much larger than the average₹1 crore for a Malayalam film at the time.The shooting was completed in 72 days atAndaman and Nicobar Islands,several parts ofKeralaandChennai.Post production took more than four months to complete. Composer Ilaiyaraaja completed his symphonic score in 16 days; audiographer Deepan Chatterji completed the sound design and mix in 90 days. This is the first Malayalam film to recorded inDolby Stereo.

The film is shot in theMalayalamlanguage. However, numerous portions contain dialogues inHindi,English,Tamil,Bengali,Telugu,andGerman.

Soundtrack

Kaalapani
Soundtrack albumby Ilaiyaraaja
Released	5 March 1996(1996-03-05)
Recorded	1996
Genre	Feature film soundtrack
Length	27:08
Label	Sagara
Producer	Ilaiyaraaja
Ilaiyaraajachronology
Thedi Vandha Raasa (1995) Kaalapani (1996) Nammoora Mandara Hoove (1996)

The music was composed and conducted byIlaiyaraaja.K. S. Chithrawas the only female singer in all the versions, while male singers kept changing from version to version.

Track list

All lyrics are written byGireesh Puthenchery,except where noted

Malayalam (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

No.	Title	Lyrics	Artist(s)	Length
1.	"Aattirambile Kombile"		M. G. Sreekumar,K. S. Chithra	5:01
2.	"Chempoove Poove"		M. G. Sreekumar, K. S. Chithra	4:59
3.	"Kottum Kuzhal Vizhi"		M. G. Sreekumar, K. S. Chithra, Chorus	5:43
4.	"Marikkoodinullil"		K. S. Chithra,Ilaiyaraaja	5:07
5.	"Vande Mataram"	Javed Akhtar	Mano,Choir	6:06

All lyrics are written byArivumathi

Tamil (dubbed version)

No.	Title	Artist(s)	Length
1.	"Alolam Kili Thopilae"	S. P. Balasubrahmanyam,K. S. Chithra	5:01
2.	"Suttum Sudar Vizhi"	M. G. Sreekumar, K. S. Chithra, Chorus	5:43
3.	"Sempoove Poove"	S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, K. S. Chithra	4:59
4.	"Mannan koorai chelai"	K. S. Chithra,Gangai Amaran	5:07
5.	"Ithu Thaai Pirandha"	Mano, Choir	6:06

All lyrics are written by P. K. Mishra, except where noted

Hindi (dubbed version)

No.	Title	Lyrics	Artist(s)	Length
1.	"Zindagi Mein Tum Mile"		Hariharan,K. S. Chithra	5:01
2.	"Bachpan Ke Saathi Mere"		Hariharan, K. S. Chithra, Choir	5:43
3.	"Sandhya Ki Laali"		M. G. Sreekumar, K. S. Chithra	4:59
4.	"Baaghon Ki Bahaarein"		K. S. Chithra, M. G. Sreekumar	5:07
5.	"Vande Mataram"	Javed Akhtar	Mano, Choir	6:06

Telugu (dubbed version)

No.	Title	Lyrics	Artist(s)	Length
1.	"Chaamanthi Poove"		S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, K. S. Chithra	4:59
2.	"Kannekommana"		S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, K. S. Chithra	5:01
3.	"Mojullona"		K. S. Chithra	5:07
4.	"Vande Mataram"	Javed Akhtar	Mano, Choir	6:06
5.	"Yakshakanne"		S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, K. S. Chithra, Choir	5:43

Reception

On 31 May 1996, P. S. Joseph fromIndia Todaywrote, "This ambitious venture by a director known for his comedies in Malayalam, and some competent films in Bollywood like -Muskurahat(1992)andGardish(1993),does not carry the impact it ought to. Despite its flashes of brilliance and exceptional photography, and a Rs 3.10 crore budget - the largest ever for a Malayalam film -Kaalapaanidoes not linger in the memory after you leave the cinema hall. "However, he praised Sabu Cyril's art direction calling it" exceptional "and Amrish Puri's performance writing," The redeeming feature is Amrish Puri - the inimitable actor with a menacing voice and remarkable screen presence. He walks tall in the prison, epitomising the brutality and viciousness of the British Raj. "Kalkimagazine reviewing Tamil dubbed versionSiraichalaipraised the performance of Mohanlal but felt Prabhu was wasted while also criticising modern wardrobe choices for a periodic subject and concluded a film that should have reached international standards likeSchinder's List,in the course of the story, nationalism is beaten, Prabhu-Mohanlal friendship, division and tragedy hence revenge thus becoming ordinary fare.D. S. Ramanujam ofThe Hindureviewing Tamil version wrote "To make a film on pre-Independence days, particularly about the dark deeds of the British and their lackeys manning the notorious Andaman prison is a formidable task. It calls for meticulous planning to capture the mood of that period right from the costume, arms and ammunition, locations and other details. Director Priyadarshan can be really proud of the outcome in Kalaipuli International'sChiraichalaiwhich is a rare movie exceptionally good in all departments of film production ".

Accolades

National Film Awards 1995

• Best Art Direction–Sabu Cyril
• Best Cinematography–Santosh Sivan
• Best Audiography– Deepan Chatterji
• Best Special Effects– S. T. Venky

Kerala State Film Awards

• Second Best Film–Mohanlal(producer), R.Mohan (co-producer)
• Best Actor–Mohanlal
• Best Cinematography- Santosh Sivan
• Best Art Director–Sabu Cyril
• Best Music Director–Ilaiyaraaja
• Best Processing Lab– Gemini Colour Lab
• Best Costume Designer– Sajin Raghavan

External links

• KaalapaniatIMDb