''Bhayanakam'' (English: ''Fearsome'') is a 2018 Indian Malayalam–language

period drama A historical drama (also period drama, costume drama, and period piece) is a work set in a past time period, usually used in the context of film and television. Historical drama includes historical fiction and romance film, romances, adventure f ...

war film War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about naval, air, or land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle scenes means that war fi ...

directed by

Jayaraj Jayarajan Rajasekharan Nair, professionally credited as Jayaraj, is an Indian filmmaker, who predominantly works in Malayalam film industry. He has won many awards, including Crystal Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival, the Golden ...

, produced by Sureshkumar Muttath, and stars writer-turned-actor

Renji Panicker Renji Panicker (born 23 September 1960) is an Indian actor, scriptwriter, director, film producer, and journalist best known for his Malayalam films. He made his debut as a director with ''Bharatchandran IPS'' in 2005. Early life He did his ...

and

Asha Sarath Asha Sharath (born 19 July 1974) is an Indian actress and classical dancer, who predominantly works in Malayalam films and television shows and also has a few Tamil, Kannada and Telugu film credits. Personal life Asha is married to Sharath ...

. The film is an adaptation of two chapters from Takazhy Sivasankara Pillai's epic Malayalam novel ''

Coir Coir (), also called coconut fibre, is a natural fibre extracted from the outer husk of coconut and used in products such as floor mats, doormats, brushes, and mattresses. Coir is the fibrous material found between the hard, internal shell ...

'' (1978). The production design for the film was carried out by artist K. M. V. Namboothiri. The film is the sixth movie in director Jayaraj's "Navarasa Series".Bhayanakam Movie Review : A stunningly crafted poetic story of a postman and a land that is stricken by the fear of death
/ref> The story is set in

Kuttanad Kuttanad ( ml, കുട്ടനാട്‌) is a region covering the Alappuzha, Kottayam and Pathanamthitta Districts, in the state of Kerala, India, well known for its vast paddy fields and geographical peculiarities. The region has the lo ...

and its backwaters in central Kerala during the

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and revolves around a postman, who delivers

money order A money order is a directive to pay a pre-specified amount of money from prepaid funds, making it a more trusted method of payment than a cheque. History The money order system was established by a private firm in Great Britain in 1792 and was ...

s at homes of those who have joined the army. When the war intensifies, he starts bringing in telegrams declaring people dead and he slowly becomes an omen of death.Anubha George (14 April 2018)
"‘The ultimate fear is the fear of war: National Film Award winner Jayaraj on 'Bhayanakam'"
Scroll.in. Retrieved 15 April 2018. The film was praised by the critics for acting performance of the lead (Panicker), the production design, and cinematography. ''The Times of India'', giving a rating of four starts out of five, called the film "a stunningly crafted poetic story of a postman and a land that is stricken by the fear of death". The film won three awards— Best Direction, Best Adapted Screenplay (Jayaraj) and Best Cinematography ( Nikhil S. Praveen)—at the 2018

National Film Awards The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremony in India. Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directorat ...

.Elizabeth Thomas (14 April 2018
"Jayaraj does it again"
''

Deccan Chronicle ''Deccan Chronicle'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper founded by Rajagopal Mudaliar in the 1930s & currently owned by Samagrah Commercial Pvt Limited. It is published in Hyderabad, Telangana, by Deccan Chronicle Holdings Limited ( ...

''. Retrieved 15 April 2018. The film also won Best Music Director ( M. K. Arjunan) and Best Colourist at the 2018

Kerala State Film Award The Kerala State Film Awards are the film awards for a motion picture made in Kerala. The awards started in 1969 by the Department of Cultural Affairs, Government of Kerala and since 1998 the awards have been bestowed by Kerala State Cha ...

s."Kerala State Awards: The master composer is rewarded... after 50 years!"
''

The New Indian Express ''The New Indian Express'' is an Indian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper published by the Chennai-based Express Publications. It was founded in 1932 as ''The Indian Express'', under the ownership of Chennai-based P. Varadarajulu Naid ...

''. 9 March 2018. Retrieved 15 April 2018.Deepa Soman (8 March 2018)
"I have never bothered much about awards: M K Arjunan, Best composer (Bhayanakam)"
''

The Times of India ''The Times of India'', also known by its abbreviation ''TOI'', is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by The Times Group. It is the third-largest newspaper in India by circulation and largest ...

''. Retrieved 15 April 2018.

Cast

as the postman — handicapped in World War I. "A role in which Renji Panicker comes up with probably the finest performance of his recently launched acting career", wrote the ''Hindu'' newspaper. *

as Gouri Kunjamma, in whose house the postman lives and whose two sons are in the Army. * Gireesh Sopanam * Vavachan * Kumarakaom Vasudevan * Sabitha Jayaraj *Vaishnavi Venugopal

Awards

; National Film Awards 2018 *

National Film Award for Best Director The National Film Award for Best Direction is an honour presented annually at India's National Film Awards ceremony by the Directorate of Film Festivals (DFF), an organisation set up by the Indian Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. Since 1 ...

– Jayaraj * National Film Award for Best Adapted Screenplay – Jayaraj *

National Film Award for Best Cinematography The National Film Award for Best Cinematography is one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India. It is one of several awards p ...

– Nikhil S. Praveen ;

Kerala State Film Awards The Kerala State Film Awards are the film awards for a motion picture made in Kerala. The awards started in 1969 by the Department of Cultural Affairs, Government of Kerala and since 1998 the awards have been bestowed by Kerala State Cha ...

2018 * Best Music Director – M. K. Arjunan ;

Beijing International Film Festival The Beijing International Film Festival (Chinese: 北京国际电影节), abbreviated BJIFF, is a film festival in Beijing, China. Founded in 2011, the film festival is supported and sponsored by China Film Administration, China Media Group an ...

2019{{cite news, url=https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/malayalam/malayalam-film-bhayanakam-wins-best-cinematography-award-beijing-international-film-festival-5686532/, title=Malayalam film Bhayanakam wins best cinematography award at Beijing International Film Festival, date=21 April 2019, publisher=The Indian Express, access-date=8 July 2020 * Best Cinematography – Nikhil S. Praveen

References

External links

* Bhayanakam Review – ''Malayala Manorama'

2018 films 2010s Malayalam-language films Indian World War II films Films based on Indian novels Films shot in Alappuzha Films whose director won the Best Director National Film Award Films whose writer won the Best Adapted Screenplay National Film Award Films about postal systems Films directed by Jayaraj