''Marana Simhasanam'' ( en, Throne of Death, french: Le Trone de la mort) is a 1999 Indian

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 2 ...

-language

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

written and directed by

Murali Nair Murali Nair (born 10 January 1966) is an Indian film director and screenwriter. He has directed eight films since 1993. His film '' Marana Simhasanam'' was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival where it won ...

. Inspired by the first execution by

electrocution Electrocution is death or severe injury caused by electric shock from electric current passing through the body. The word is derived from "electro" and "execution", but it is also used for accidental death. The term "electrocution" was coine ...

in India, the film was screened in the

Un Certain Regard (, meaning 'a certain glance') is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's official selection. It is run at the Debussy, parallel to the competition for the . This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob. The section presents 20 films w ...

section at the

1999 Cannes Film Festival The 52nd Cannes Film Festival was held from 12 to 23 May 1999. Canadian filmmaker, actor and author David Cronenberg was the Jury President. The Palme d'Or went to the French– Belgian film ''Rosetta'' by Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne. The festi ...

where it won the

Caméra d'Or The Caméra d'Or ("''Golden Camera''") is an award of the Cannes Film Festival for the best first feature film presented in one of the Cannes' selections (Official Selection, Directors' Fortnight The Directors' Fortnight (french: Quinzaine des ...

. The film received special reception at the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery (United Kingdom), National Lot ...

. The film received positive reviews from ''

Le Monde ''Le Monde'' (; ) is a French daily afternoon newspaper. It is the main publication of Le Monde Group and reported an average circulation of 323,039 copies per issue in 2009, about 40,000 of which were sold abroad. It has had its own website si ...

'' for its unusual theme. The film was screened in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

Torino Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. T ...

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

Pusan Busan (), officially known as is South Korea's most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.4 million inhabitants. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economic, cultural and educational center of southeastern South Korea, ...

La Rochelle La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle''; oc, La Rochèla ) is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department. Wi ...

, Midnight Sun Film Festival Lapland, and the American Film Institute's Film Festival.

Plot

Krishnan is an out-of-work seasonal farmer who is driven to steal coconuts from his landlord to support his family. When he is caught and imprisoned, he is shocked to learn that he has been charged with the murder of a man who has been missing from the island for many years. But since it was an election time, and the most popular platform for politicians had become capital punishment, Krishnan is sentenced to death in the country's newest technology - electrocution by electric chair funded by the World bank. He is promised a statue being erected in his honour.

Cast

* Vishwas Njavakkal * Lakshmi Raman * Suhas Thayat * Jeevan Mitva

Production

The film was shot entirely by amateur team on location near the Manjanikkadu islet in

Vypin Vypin (Malayalam: വൈപ്പിന്‍, Cochin Portuguese: Isla Santa) is one of the group of islands that form part of the city of Kochi (Cochin), in the Indian state of Kerala. Vypin forms a barrier island which lies between the Ar ...

, a small island off the coast of

Njarakkal Narakkal is a village in the Vypin area situated in Ernakulam district in the Indian state of Kerala. Demographics Narakkal is situated at the centre of Vypeen island. Njarakkal is also known as Narakkal. Landmarks * Fish Farm and Aqua ...

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

, India. Except the female lead, all characters were portrayed by the locals in the village, including a widowed basket weaver who responded to a casting advertisement in the Malayalam daily Mathrubhoomi.

Accolades

References

External links

* {{Caméra d'Or, state=collapsed 1999 films 1999 drama films Films about discrimination Films about prejudice Films about abuse Caméra d'Or winners Films about capital punishment Indian drama films Films about death Works about law enforcement Fictional portrayals of the Kerala Police Films shot in Kochi Films about social issues in India Films about poverty in India 1990s Malayalam-language films Films directed by Murali Nair Films about corruption in India