''Malli'' is a 1998 Indian

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...

-language feature

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

directed by

Santosh Sivan Santosh Sivan (born 8 February 1964) is an Indian cinematographer, film director, producer and actor known for his works in Malayalam, Tamil and Hindi cinema. Santosh graduated from the Film and Television Institute of India and has to date co ...

. The film met with widespread critical acclaim upon release, and has been shown at many film festivals including the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a permane ...

and the New York International Children's Film Festival. It won the Best Film on Environment Conservation/Preservation at the 46th National Film Awards.

Synopsis

The film revolves around the story of ''Malli'' (P. Shwetha), a poor girl who spends most of her time helping her family by collecting firewood, and playing games in a nearby forest with her deaf and dumb best friend. Amongst her many dreams, her one main wish is to get herself a colourful dress to wear to a lively festival. However, during her quest she meets an old, local storyteller, who shares with her a story of a magical blue stone that can cure her best friend's muteness. With new horizons to pursue, she sets off to find this mysterious blue wishing stone.

Cast

P. Shwetha P. Shwetha (born in Chennai, India) is an actress. She debuted in the critically acclaimed film '' Malli'' (1998), directed by Santosh Sivan, playing the young girl Malli, on an adventure to find a blue wishing stone to help cure her best friend' ...

*Priya *

Janagaraj Janagaraj is an Indian actor who has appeared in over 200 films predominantly in Tamil cinema as a comedian or in supporting roles. He also starred in few Malayalam, Telugu and Hindi films. Early life Janagaraj was born to Vadivelu and Muthu ...

*Parameshwaran *Manoj Pillai

Plot

Malli, a ten-year-old girl, tries her best to help her poor parents by collecting firewood. In between; she spies on ‘Mr. Doctor’, the village Vet, who constantly converses with his patients from the animal world. Malli actually hero worships him; and even tries to imitate him secretly She has just two personal dreams: To own a new dress for the festival; and To get the ‘Blue Bead’ which can cure her friend's inborn deficiency. Old Monu, the village storyteller had in her tale of "The Good Spirit". Monu habitually conceives purely imaginary heroic tales which impress Malli very deeply. In that story, Monu illustrated how a ‘Good Spirit’ once had given Monu a Blue Bead as a gift. Malli bribes ! Monu with some honey. In return Monu recites to nonsensical, meaningless rhyme for inviting the Spirit. One back night, Malli tries to invite the Spirit with the rhyme, in vain. On the Festival Malli is thrilled with her new yellow dress her way back from the woods, she rescues a fawn shot down by a poacher. After a long, hazardous journey through thick woods she reaches the Vet's house late at night and waits through the night while he treats the injured fawn. In the morning she begins her long trek back home with the new pet. At the riverside, finding the fawn's happy reaction to its bird community, Malli sets it free. Her despair is further compounded to find her new dress tattered beyond repair, when suddenly a bright object in the sand catches her eye – it's the Blue Bead!

Production

The film was made in 9 days on a shoestring budget of ₹25 lakh (worth ₹2.1 crore in 2021 prices) for National Centre for Children and Young People.

Awards

The film has been nominated for the following awards since its release: 2001

Independent Spirit Awards The Independent Spirit Awards (abbreviated Spirit Awards and originally known as the FINDIE or Friends of Independents Awards), founded in 1984, are awards dedicated to independent filmmakers. Winners were typically presented with Poly(methyl m ...

(United States) * Nominated - Independent Spirit Award - Best Foreign Film - Malli -

2001 Political Film Society (United States) * Nominated - PFS Award - Peace - Malli -

2001

Satellite Awards The Satellite Awards are annual awards given by the International Press Academy that are commonly noted in entertainment industry journals and blogs. The awards were originally known as the Golden Satellite Awards. The award ceremonies take place ...

(United States) * Nominated - Golden Satellite Award - Best Motion Picture (Foreign Language) - Malli -

1999 Chicago International Children's Film Festival (United States) * Nominated - Adult Jury Award - 2nd Place - Malli -

The film has won the following awards since its release: 1998

Cairo International Film Festival The Cairo International Film Festival ( ar, مهرجان القاهرة السينمائي الدولي) is an annual internationally accredited film festival held in Cairo Opera House. It was established in 1976 and has taken place every year sin ...

(

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

) * Won - Golden Pyramid - Best Film - Malli -

* Won - Best Director -

2004

Los Angeles Indian Film Festival The Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA) is an annual film festival held in Los Angeles, California. Established by Christina Marouda in 2003, as a nonprofit organization devoted to paving the way for a greater appreciation of Indian cinema

(United States) * Won - Audience Award - Best Feature Film - Malli -

1999

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 ...

(India) * Won - Silver Lotus Award - Best Child Artist -

* Won - Silver Lotus Award - Best Film on Environment Preservation/Conservation - Malli -

18th 18 (eighteen) is the natural number following 17 and preceding 19. In mathematics * Eighteen is a composite number, its divisors being 1, 2, 3, 6 and 9. Three of these divisors (3, 6 and 9) add up to 18, hence 18 is a semiperfect number. ...

International Festival of Films For Children Ale Kino, (

Poznań Poznań () is a city on the River Warta in west-central Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business centre, and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

, 15–20 May 2000) * Poznan Goats for the Best Director - Santosh Sivan. * Poznan Goats for the Best Child - actress - Swetha * Poznan Goats for the Music - Aslam Mustafa * Award for the special mentions for the Marcinek distinction

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Malli (Film) 1998 films 1990s Tamil-language films Best Film on Environment Conservation/Preservation National Film Award winners Films directed by Santosh Sivan