Movies - Perumthachan

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Perumthachan also spelled as "Perunthachan" meaning (the master carpenter or the master craftsman) is a honorific title that is used to refer to an ancient legendary carpenter, architect, woodcarver and sculptor from Kerala, South India. It is also the title of a masterpiece motion picture of malayalam cinema. Little historical evidence exists for a factual existence of this character. However Perumthachan is an important figure in the folklore of Kerala and many a wondrous structure and architecture that still stands are attributed to him.

The story of perumthachan has been a source of artistic expression for various people. It has been the basis for a great malayalam dramatic monologue poem of the same name by G. Sankara kurup. The legend of perumthachan was also depicted in a masterpiece motion picture in malayalam cinema. It was directed by Ajayan (1990) and won accolades from all around the world for its cinematography and direction.

The legend

According to legend, Perumthachan was born to a high caste Brahmin father and a low caste mother. Because he was born to a low caste mother he was abandoned immediately after birth and was raised by a carpenter family. As he grew up, he mastered the art and science of carpentry and architecture. He was commissioned by several powerful and wealthy people for many a great architectural projects to build temples and palaces with his artisary. He read the sacred texts and mastered the ancient intellectual tradition. In course of time he became known as a reincarnation of the chief architect of the gods. However, since he was born to a low caste mother, he was never accepted as an equal in the society despite his excellence and artistic mastery.

Perumthachan had a son who like him mastered and excelled in carpentry and architecture. His son soon excelled his own perfection. The renown of perumthachan's son spread far and wide. But unlike the father, his son wanted to explore artistic creativity beyond formal tradition. He did not strictly adhere to some of the formal tenets of art in his works, and attained greater expression and depth gaining favour of the powerful people who commissioned massive projects. However this greater artistic depth came at the cost of classical rules and formal balance, which was considered more important in the classical texts. This angered perumthachan. At one time, his son fell in love with the daughter of a high caste brahmin, for whom the father and son were carrying out an architectural project. This completely devastated perumthachan and he saw this as a total disrespect to the strict tenet of caste structure. For him this act was a total disruption of the classical rules of the professional conduct for carpenters and architects. In extreme despair over the destruction of his ideals by his own son, perumthachan dropped his chisel on his own son and then consumed himself in flames in atonement. He also burned in this despair the treatise on carpentry and architecture that he had written in order to impart it to his son and the future generations.

The Shiva temple at Uliyannore and the Valluvanad temples that still exists in Kerala are attributed to Perumthachan.

The motion picture

The Motion picture Perumthachan was directed by Ajayan in 1990. It is a masterpiece of malayalam cinema. It is noted for its skilful cinematography by Santosh Sivan, which captures the ethos of South Indian pastoral life and the artistic and cultural perspective of the people. The screenplay was written by a prominent script writer M. T. Vasudevan Nair. The lighting is evocative of the country-side and the music composed by Johnson sets the theme to a strong force. The motion picture is also noted for its art direction and detailed description of life in ancient times.

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