''Thacholi Othenan '' is a 1964 Indian Malayalam-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 directed by S. S. Rajan and starring Sathyan in the

titular role The title character in a narrative work is one who is named or referred to in the title of the work. In a performed work such as a play or film, the performer who plays the title character is said to have the title role of the piece. The title of ...

. The film won the

National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Malayalam The National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Malayalam 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 seve ...

for the year 1964.

Cast

* Sathyan as Thacholi Othenan *

P. J. Antony P. J. Antony (1 January 1925 – 14 March 1979) was an Indian stage and film actor. He received the National Film Award for Best Actor for his performance in ''Nirmalyam'' in 1974. He was also the first actor working in Malayalam cinema to recei ...

as Kathiroor Gurukkal *

Ambika 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, th ...

as Kunki *Devaki as Kunhikanni *

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 ...

as Ambu *Kunhandy as Chaappan *

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 ...

as Unniyarcha *

Kottayam Chellappan Kottayam Chellappan (10 November 1923 – 26 December 1971) was an Indian actor in Malayalam movies. He was also a renowned stage actor and film actor who was very active in Malayalam films during the 1960s and '70s. He died on 26 December 1971 ...

as Payyanadan Chindan *Master Prasad as Kunhambadi

Soundtrack

Music by

M. S. Baburaj Mohammad Sabir Baburaj was an Indian music composer. He is often credited for the renaissance of Malayalam film music. Baburaj has rendered music to many evergreen Malayalam film songs. Early years Baburaj was born on 9 March 1929 in Kozhikode ...

. The song "Anjanakkannezhuthi" written by

P. Bhaskaran Pulloottupadathu Bhaskaran alias as P. Bhaskaran (21 April 1924 – 25 February 2007), was a Malayalam poet, lyricist of Malayalam film songs, and filmmaker. He penned more than 3000 songs for about 250 films. He also directed 44 Malayalam fea ...

and sung by

S. Janaki Sistla Janaki (born 23 April 1938) is an Indian playback singer and occasional music composer from Andhra Pradesh. She is referred to respectfully as "Janaki Amma" and Nightingale of South India. She is one of the best-known playback singers in ...

was well received. A writer called the film's verses "evocative". *'Anjanakkannezhuthi' (

) * ‘Appam Venam Ada Venam,' (P. Leela-Santha P. Nair) * ‘Kanni Nilavathu' (Leela) *‘Kottum Njaan Kettilla' (Leela & chorus) * ‘Nallola Painkili' (Leela & chorus) * ‘Naavulla Veenayanu' (K. P. Udayabhanu) * ‘Ezhimala Kaadukali' (Leela & chorus)

Reception

In a review of the film for ''

The Hindu ''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It began as a weekly in 1878 and became a daily in 1889. It is one of the Indian newspapers of record and the secon ...

'' in 2012, B. Vijayakumar wrote that the film would be remembered "its excellent music and one of the best films in the popular ‘vadakkan paattu' genre". Sathyan's portrayal of Othenan was one of his landmark performances.

References

{{Reflist Indian historical drama films 1960s Malayalam-language films Best Malayalam Feature Film National Film Award winners