Aadu Jeevitham may not be everyone’s movie; I haven’t seen it yet and won’t. However, from the visuals and few snippets that you get to see by chance, one can definitely say that the movie had performance and cinematic aesthetics much better than Atlee’s Jawan starring Shah Rukh Khan.
I verified on Google if Aadu Jeevitham was not eligible for the 2023 list. According to a jury, it was on their list and wasn’t considered, and they had their reasons for doing so. It’s evident that Prithiviraj’s political motive was the reason for this treatment.
His political motive is his choice. I personally will troll him, question him, and ignore him on his political motive. But I have a choice regarding his movies. I cannot watch Empuraan, I watched the awful Salaar, and I liked the movie Guruvayoor Ambalanadayil. I will appreciate his efforts for Aadu Jeevitham. I liked Jana Gana Mana for its theme, even with its forced political agenda.
Likewise, the government also has its agenda and choice. If anyone uses an entertainment platform for political motives, any government can respond in political terms.
Prithviraj is mature enough to understand this. Every time he imposes his political motives in his films, he would have known the consequences. I don’t think he will come out and say anything about Aadu Jeevitham. I believe he will continue to make more movies with political motives.
However, he should consider whether he should use this industry for his political reasons. He should rather come into politics and stand by his agenda. That’s what heroes in movies do. Moreover, people watch movies for entertainment, not for enlightenment. This is not the medium for anyone’s political intentions.
At the same time, Aadu Jeevitham deserves a mention. To be on the list and then award SRK for Jawan is pathetic jury service. It’s said that Ashutosh Gowariker, director of Swades, was on the jury and influenced this award. I’m not sure if he watched Swades or Jawan to make this decision.
Ironically, awarding Jawan is not just tone-deaf — it’s outright foolish. Atlee, through Shah Rukh Khan, laced the film with subtle digs at the current regime. So if the goal was to sideline those against the BJP, the jury failed miserably there too. Pathetic.
The government uses different yardsticks for DMK-supporting actor Surya and Prithviraj. Surya has made baseless and one-sided arguments against policies and was awarded for his Soorarai Pottru, an average film where facts were distorted to peddle Dravidian propaganda. On the other hand, Prithviraj is denied even recognition. Why is that?
The government proclaims that it treats everyone equally and provides merit-based recognition; it should stop saying that. Or they should treat entertainment as entertainment. There are several other cases against Prithviraj, and they should go the legal way against him. Using this jury isn’t dharmic.
After all, we’re not like Congress, that’s what we continue to say in parliament.
Moving on to The Kerala Story. The facts behind Kerala Story deserved a movie, no doubt. It deserves to be made tax-free and some state governments did. The awareness about the issue was required. The film got a good response, especially from Kerala no matter the noise from the secular leftists.
Even if it was one girl’s story, it’s justified. Every life matters. Aadu Jeevitham was also one man’s story, so this movie was totally justified.
However, giving Kerala Story the highest recognition with national award for Best Direction? Seriously? It was a mediocre movie with abysmally low standards of screenplay, worse than standard serials. The overall acting was pathetic.
Maybe it deserved an award in the public interest awareness category. But to be awarded the best movie among all others is insulting everyone in the industry and anyone who goes to the theater to watch a movie. This is like making Pratibha Patil the President of this country.
I wouldn’t be surprised if another mediocre moviemaker, Vivek Agnihotri, gets the best director award, or The Kashmir Files gets best film, or Surya in Kanguva gets best actor. We should even award Mohanlal the best actor in Empuraan to compensate for this backlash.
This article is a reproduction of a Facebook Post by Suresh Kumar.
Subscribe to our channels on Telegram, WhatsApp, and Instagram and get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.