Kaliyattam is a 1997 Indian Malayalam-language tragedy film directed by Jayaraj. It stars Suresh Gopi, Lal (in his acting debut), Biju Menon and Manju Warrier. The film is an adaptation of William Shakespeare's play Othello, set against the backdrop of the Theyyam performance of Kerala. The film's screenplay is written by Balram Mattannur. Suresh Gopi plays Kannan Perumalayan, the equivalent to Othello, Lal plays Paniyan, the equivalent to Iago, Manju Warrier plays Thamara, the Desdemona version, and Biju Menon plays Kanthan, Cassio's role. Suresh Gopi's role as Kannan Perumalayan was critically acclaimed and was considered one of the finest acting performances in his career.

Plot

This is an adaptation of Shakespeare's Othello, revolving around Kannan Perumalayan, a Theyyam artist who corresponds to Othello, and Thamara, the beautiful daughter of the village head. While Unni Thampuran hates Kannan because he had a crush on Thamara, and Paniyan, who plays a Komali, covets the role of Theechamundi which Perumalayan holds. Paniyan plants the seeds of doubt about Thamara's fidelity in Kannan's mind, making him suspect that Thamara and his assistant, Kanthan, are having an affair. Kannan spots a silk robe which he had presented to Thamara in Kanthan's hands.

Awards