Prem Nazirine Kanmanilla (1983)

In the riveting drama of Prem Nazirine Kanmanilla, a band of disgruntled youths orchestrate an audacious scheme to kidnap the renowned Malayalam actor, Prem Nazir, from a bustling film set. Spiriting him away to a crumbling homestead ensnared within a labyrinthine forest, these disillusioned rebels, rather paradoxically, treat their captive with a respect that echoes reverence, their hospitality constrained only by their austere surroundings. The motley crew of captors consists of characters shaped by societal disappointment. Sreenivasan, born into an upper-caste Hindu family, is a highly educated man reduced to disillusionment by his inability to secure suitable employment. Vijay Menon, another accomplice, carries the haunting specter of a childhood marred by the brutal murder of his parents, his life thereafter spent in servitude to the perpetrator. Their audacious act of kidnapping is a defiant outcry against the apathy of a society that has failed them. News of Nazir's abduction sends shockwaves through Kerala. The silver screen's twinkling stars of yesteryears, Ragini and Kumari, are portrayed nostalgically, engrossed in old films featuring their erstwhile co-star. The cinema industry, caught in the grip of this sensational event, halts new releases, replacing them with a retroactive celebration of Nazir's cinematic legacy. The opportunistic movie distributors find a silver lining in the crisis, capitalizing on the resurgence of Nazir's films to bolster their revenues. The plot thickens with the introduction of Innocent, the beleaguered producer of Nazir's unfinished film. With just two scenes left to shoot, he hatches a desperate plan to use Nazir's brother, Prem Nawaz, as a stand-in, hoping to wrap up the production and cash in on the heightened public interest. Meanwhile, the political landscape simmers with tension. The incumbent government faces mounting criticism over perceived investigative ineptitude, while the opposition party stokes the fire, accusing the authorities of failing to protect Nazir due to his opposition sympathies. The drama of Prem Nazirine Kanmanilla thus unfolds at the intersection of cinema, societal disillusionment, and political intrigue, providing a potent commentary on the complexities of society.

Prem Nazirine Kanmanilla is a drama movie featuring Prem Nazir and directed by Lenin Rajendran.

Prem Nazirine Kanmanilla is currently streaming on Eros Now.