Thoovanathumbikal

Infobox_Film
name = 'Thoovanathumbikal'
imdb_id = 0249188
writer = P. Padmarajan
starring = Mohanlal,
Sumalatha,
Parvathy
director = P. Padmarajan
producer = P. Stanley
distributor = Sitara Pictures
released = 1987
runtime = 151 mins.
language = Malayalam
music = Perumbavoor G. Raveendranath
awards =
budget =

"Thoovanathumbikal" (Translation: "Butterflies in the Spraying Rain") is a 1987 Indian film written and directed by the late P. Padmarajan, which is based on his own short story "Udakappola". The protagonist is Jayakrishnan, who displays two entirely different faces, that of a rustic person and a sophisticated one. The film won rare accolades for the brilliant script. Perumbavoor G. Raveendranath composed some excellent musical scores ("Onnaam Raagam Paadi","Megham Poothu Thudangi") for the film. Mohanlal is seen delivering one of his best performances as Jayakrishnan. The highlight of the film is the bold subject that is not dealt with usually in Malayalam films.

Plot

Jayakrishnan (Mohanlal), a well-to-do bachelor lives a dual life, one among his friends in the town and the other at his native village, where he lives with his mother and sister. While he is a free bird celebrating life with his crowd of friends in town, he is a proper family-man at home. The film is about his dual life and his encounter with the sex-worker-to-be Clara (Sumalatha), which takes him on a different journey and his love of Radha (Parvathy).

Jayakrishnan is a typical Keralaite guy belonging to a noble family. He has his own vision of life, especially when it comes to marriage. He is hardworker and works in his own farm. At the same time he find time to enjoy a very modern life with his friends in town, about which very few people in his village knows.

One day he meets a girl called Radha, who is a distant relative of his and he falls in love with her. What attracts him to Radha is her toughness in her words (which normally portrays a persons character) which very few girls will possess. Now he feels it very hard not to tell Radha that he loves her and want to marry her. But Radha refuses it, thinking that he is a flirt.

Meanwhile, Jayakrishnan meets another girl, Clara. She hails from coastal fishermen community and was having poor life with her step-mother harassing her badly and was trying to get out her clutches. As an easy way for this, Clara agrees to become a sex worker and meets Jayakrishnan. Under the depression on getting rejected by Radha, Jayakrishnan gets acquainted with Clara and under one circumstance, make love with her. Later realizing that Clara was a virgin, Jayakrishnan becomes very much disturbed. Because one of his promises to his life is not to spoil a girls virginity unless, she is his wife or in-case he happens to do so, then that girls should become his wife. Thinking that breaking his one promise in life, he may spoil his entire life, Jayakrishan proposes to Clara. Admired by his sincerity to life she felt it difficult to reject his proposal and so Clara just disappears from Jayakrishnan because, she did not want to spoil his life by becoming his wife as she has already become a sex-worker in mind.

During this time, Radha, hearing more about Jayakrishnan from her brother (Madhavan), who is pretty close to Jayakrishnan, starts falling in love with him and becomes ready to accept his proposal. Her brother tell her that it was the first time that Jayakrishnan is proposing to a girl. She meets Jayakrishan and express her feelings and tell him that she feels sorry about what had happened in their first meeting. But now Jayakrishnan feels that he is not the right person for Radha and when she asks the reason, he will disclose everything that happened for him with Clara. Now she feels even more closer to him because of his sincerity. Radha, now express to Jayakrishnan, how she feels about him and tell him that she is not worried about his past and since he is not going to meet Clara anymore, she does not care about her. But Clara comes to the town again to meet Jayakrishnan. Jayakrishnan couldn't help him from not meeting her. During his time with her, he tell her about Radha, and Clara feels so happy about that. But later on Clara feels that she is the hindrance for Jayakrishnan not committing to Radha and vows that she will not meet him anymore. And before she leaves, request him not to disappoint Radha.

Now Jayakrishan and Radha get closer to each other and decides to marry. Everything goes on fine for a period until one day Jayakrishnan gets a telegram stating that Clara is coming to see him once more and this would be the last time they would meet each other and it would be at the town railway station. Clara is on her way for a long journey. Being shocked by this, Jayakrishnan and Radha couldn't decide what to do next. Radha requests Jayakrishnan not to meet Clara, but Jayakrishnan could not resist his mind from seeing her.

Towards the end of the movie, Jayakrishnan reaches the station to meet Clara. Radha too reaches the station without Jayakrishan's knowledge. At the station both gets shocked by seeing that Clara had already got married and is having a baby. She tells Jayakrishnan that she had decided to marry in-order to save both their futures. Now she will have a family life and Jayakrishnan will get Radha, with whom he had actually fallen in love. At the end the movie Clara leaves Jayakrishnan's life forever and Radha marries Jayakrishnan (though not shown explicitly in the end).

Trivia

Part of this movie, especially Jayakrishnan's life style in the town is loosely based on the life style followed by one of Padmarajan's friends Karakath Unni Menon. Padmarajan met Unni Menon, when the former was working at All India Radio, Thrissur. The friends of Jayakrishan were loosely based on the other friends of Unni Menon, "Kanjavu Varkey", 'Express George' and Vijayan Karot.

Cast

*Mohanlal - Jayakrishnan
*Sumalatha - Clara
*Parvathi - Radha
*Ashokan - Rishi
*Babu Namboothiri - Thangal
*Srinath - Madhavan
*Sukumari - Jayakrishnan's Mother
*Jagathi Sreekumar - Ravunni/Ramanunni Nair
*Sankaradi - Radha's Father
*M.G. Soman - Moni Joseph

Credits

*Music Director - Perumbavoor G. Raveendranath

Related Movies

*Movies by the same director
Njan Gandharvan (1991)
Innale (1990)
Season (1989)
Aparan (1988)
Moonnam Pakkam (1988)
Nombarathippoovu (1987)
Arappatta Kettiya Gramatthil (1986)
Kariyilakkattupole (1986)
Desadanakkili Karayarilla (1986)
Namukku Parkkan Munthirithoppukal (1986)
Thinkalazhcha Nalla Divasam (1985)
Parannu Parannu Parannu (1984)
Koodevide? (1983)
Novemberinte Nashtam (1982)
Kallan Pavithran (1981)
Oridathoru Phayalvan (There Lived a Wrestler : English title) (1981)
Peruvazhiyambalam (1979)

External links

imdb title|id=0249188|title=Thoovanathumbikal
[http://www.weblokam.com/cinema/location/0411/18/1041118018_1.htm Web lokam article on Karakath Unni Menon]