''Veluthampi Dalawa'' is a 1962

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 22 scheduled languages of India. Malayalam was des ...

-language

historical 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 ...

film based on the life of

Velu Thampi Dalawa Velayudhan Chempakaraman Thampi of Thalakulam (1765–1809) was the Dalawa or Prime Minister of the Indian kingdom of Travancore between 1802 and 1809 during the reign of Bala Rama Varma Kulasekhara Perumal. He is best known for being one ...

, the

Dewan ''Dewan'' (also known as ''diwan'', sometimes spelled ''devan'' or ''divan'') designated a powerful government official, minister, or ruler. A ''dewan'' was the head of a state institution of the same name (see Divan). Diwans belonged to the el ...

Travancore The Kingdom of Travancore ( /ˈtrævənkɔːr/), also known as the Kingdom of Thiruvithamkoor, was an Indian kingdom from c. 1729 until 1949. It was ruled by the Travancore Royal Family from Padmanabhapuram, and later Thiruvananthapuram. At ...

during the first decade of 19th century, was one of the first to rebel against the

British East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...

's supremacy. The film, directed by G. Viswanath and written by Jagathy N. K. Achary was shot in Newton Studios.

Kottarakkara Sreedharan Nair N. Sreedharan Nair (11 September 1922 – 19 October 1986), popularly known as Kottarakkara Sreedharan Nair or just Kottarakkara, was an Indian actor who appeared Malayalam movies. He hailed from Kottarakkara in Kollam district of Kerala. Sree ...

Thikkurissy Sukumaran Nair Thikkurissy Sukumaran Nair (16 October 191611 March 1997) was an Indian poet, playwright, script writer, lyricist, orator, film director and actor, though he is best known as an actor in Malayalam cinema. He is the recipient of Padma Shri from t ...

Prem Nawas Prem Nawas (born Abdul Wahab) was an Indian actor and producer in Malayalam cinema, and the younger brother of Malayalam cinema actor Prem Nazir. His parents were Shahul Hameed and Asmabeevi. He lost his mother at a very young age, and his fath ...

Adoor Bhasi K. Bhaskaran Nair (1 March 1929 – 29 March 1990), known by his stage name Adoor Bhasi, was an Indian actor and film director from Kerala. Adoor Bhasi was almost always cast as the man who stands next to the hero. His hilarious actions and role ...

, G. K. Pillai, Ragini,

Ambika Sukumaran Ambika may refer to: Mythology * Ambika (goddess), an avatar of the Hindu goddesses Durga, Parvati, and Shakti * Ambika (Jainism), a Jain Yakshini goddess * Ambika (Mahabharata), the wife of Vichitravirya was also the mother of Dhritarashtra, t ...

and

Sukumari Sukumari Amma (6 October 1940 – 26 March 2013) was an Indian actress best known for her works in Malayalam and Tamil films. In a career spanning more than five decades, She has appeared in more than 2500 films predominantly in Malayalam, Tam ...

portrayed prominent roles. The dances were choreographed by Chinni and Sampath along with Kalamandalam Madhavan. The film was a box office success.

Plot

The story begins during the tyrannical regime of Jayanthan Namboodiri (Thikkkurissi Sukumaran Nair), the 'Dalawa' of Travancore. The country was plagued by corruption and mismanagement at all levels. Veluthampi (Kottarakkara Sreedharan Nair), who was in royal service, succeeded in exposing the tyranny of Jayanthan Namboodiri and rose to the position of Dalawa. Jayanthan Namboodiri’s ears were cut as punishment, and he was banished from Travancore. Veluthampi resorted to harsh punishments in order to improve the law and order of the kingdom. His overbearing conduct created resentment among his colleagues. The corrupt revenue officer Mallan Pillai (Adoor Bhasi) was punished and terminated from service. The powerful cabinet official Kunju Neelan Pillai (G. K. Pillai) and his group were supporters of the

. They leaked the defence secrets of the country to the Resident British Officer Macaulay (Satyapal). Veluthampi was vigilant and, in his landmark ' Kundara Proclamation' urged the people to fight against the British. This made him popular among the states of

Cochin Kochi (), also known as Cochin ( ) ( the official name until 1996) is a major port city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of K ...

and

Kozhikode Kozhikode (), also known in English as Calicut, is a city along the Malabar Coast in the state of Kerala in India. It has a corporation limit population of 609,224 and a metropolitan population of more than 2 million, making it the second la ...

, and they offered their support to him in his fight against the British. Jagadambika (Ragini) was in love with Veluthampi and supported him in his plans against the British. She entered Macaulay’s bungalow in disguise and managed to recover the defence files, but was shot dead. Before she died, Jagadambika handed over the files to Veluthampi. He took an oath to drive away the British from the country. The British succeeded in invading and bringing under their control several towns and villages surrounding

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...

. Veluthampi requested the king to release more arms and ammunition, including rifles, to fight against the British. Kunju Neelan Pillai alleged that it was Veluthampi who provoked the British against Travancore. The king believes the allegation, and Veluthampi quit his post as Dalawa. After conducting the marriage of his niece Seethalakshmi (Ambika) and Unni Namboodiri (Prem Nawaz), Veluthampi left to take refuge in the sanctum sanctorum of Mannadi Temple along with his brother Padmanabhan Thampi. The British surrounded the temple, but Veluthampi killed himself before they could enter; Padmanabhan decapitated Veluthampi.

Cast

as Veluthampi Dalawa *

as Jayanthan Namboodiri * Ragini as Jagadambika *

as Mallan Pillai *

as Seethalakshmi *

as Unni Namboodiri * G. K. Pillai as Kunju Neelan Pillai * Satyapal as Macaulay *

Bahadoor Padiyath Kochumoideen Kunjalu (1930 22 May 2000), known by his stage name Bahadoor, was an Indian actor and comedian who, along with Adoor Bhasi, redefined the way in which comedy and funny scenes were perceived in the Malayalam cinema. They ...

as Peter, Macauly's butler *

as Janaki *

Aranmula Ponnamma Aranmula Ponnamma (8 April 1914 – 21 February 2011) was a National Award winning Indian actress known for her roles as mother of the protagonist in numerous films in a career spanning over five decades. She is widely described as a mother ...

N. N. Pillai N. N. Pillai (Narayana Pillai Narayana Pillai; 1918–1995) was an Indian playwright, actor, theatre director, orator, screenplay writer, lyricist and an I.N.A Freedom fighter. (Served as Commanding Officer of Field Propaganda Unit under Neta ...

T. R. Omana T. R. Omana is an Indian actress in Malayalam films. She mainly acts in supporting roles and mother roles. She has acted in more than 500 films. Personal life T. R. Omana was born as eldest among five children to T R Gopala Pillai, Timber mer ...

as Rahael * Kedamangalam Sadanandan * Parthasarathy * R. N. Nambiar * A. R. Kizhuthally * Panjabi as Subha Iyyer * Velayudhan Nair * Simhalan * P. A. Thomas as Mathew Tharakan * Wahab Kashmiri

Soundtrack

The music was composed by V. Dakshinamoorthy and

Parthasarathy Krishna (; Sanskrit: , ' in IAST, pronounced (Classical Sanskrit) and in ''Vedic Sanskrit'' is a Hindu deity worshipped across many traditions of Hinduism in a variety of different perspectives. In Hinduism, Krishna is recognized as the comple ...

and lyrics were written by

Abhayadev Abhayadev (25 June 1913 – 26 July 2000) was an Indian poet and lyricist during the 1970s in Malayalam movies. He wrote lyrics for around 500 films and dialogues for 25 Malayalam movies. He was born as Ayyappan Pillai, to Karimalil Kesava Pillai ...

. The tracks "Innu Nalla Laakkaa", "Viral Onnillenkilum", "Enthinu Moham", and "Kaathu Kolka Njangale" were popular during those times.

Legacy

The film's success and the performance of Kottarakkara Sreedharan Nair as Veluthampi Dalawa prompted Udaya Studio and director

Kunchacko Kunchacko (19 February 1912 – 15 June 1976) was an Indian film producer and director who worked in the Malayalam cinema, Malayalam film industry. His venture Udaya Studios influenced the gradual shift of Malayalam film industry from its origi ...

to cast him as

Kerala Varma Pazhassi Raja Pazhassi Raja () (3 January 1753 – 30 November 1805) was known as Kerala Varma and was also known as Cotiote Rajah and Pychy Rajah. He was a warrior Hindu prince and de facto head of the kingdom of Kottayam, otherwise known as Cotiote, in ...

in their historical film ''

Pazhassi Raja Pazhassi Raja () (3 January 1753 – 30 November 1805) was known as Kerala Varma and was also known as Cotiote Rajah and Pychy Rajah. He was a warrior Hindu prince and de facto head of the kingdom of Kottayam, otherwise known as Cotiote, in ...

'' (1964), but it did not perform well at the box office.

References

{{Reflist

External links

The Hindu article
1960s Malayalam-language films 1960s heist films 1960s historical films Indian black-and-white films Indian heist films Films set in the British Raj Films shot in Thiruvananthapuram Films shot in Kollam Films shot in Alappuzha Films shot in Kochi Films shot in Kozhikode 1962 films Kalarippayattu films History of India on film History of Kerala on film Indian historical films