Urumi

About the film

Urumi (also known as Urumi: The Warriors Who Wanted to Kill Vasco Da Gama) is a 2011 Indian Malayalam-language epic historical drama film written by Shankar Ramakrishnan. It was directed and co-produced by Santosh Sivan. It features an ensemble cast including Prithviraj Sukumaran, Arya, Prabhu Deva, Genelia D'Souza, Nithya Menon, Vidya Balan, Jagathy Sreekumar, Alex O'Nell, Sasi Kallinga and Tabu. The film marks the debut of both Prabhu Deva and Genelia D'Souza in Malayalam cinema.

The film is set in the early 16th century, when the Portuguese ruled over large parts of the Indian Ocean. The story follows Murikkancheri Kelu (Prithviraj), who seeks to avenge the killing of his father by Portuguese colonizers, and his companions Vavvali of Nagapattinam (Prabhu Deva), princess Ayesha of Arackel (Genelia D'Souza) and princess Bala of Chirakkal (Nithya Menon). The plot incorporates the intrigues of the Chirakkal royal family, where Kelu serves as commander-in-chief, its rivalry with the house of Arackal, and the assassination of prince Bhanu Vikraman (Ankur Khanna). The plot also incorporates historical figures such as Estêvão da Gama (Alexx O'Nell), Vasco da Gama (Alexx O'Nell and Robin Pratt) and Chenichery Kurup (Jagathy Sreekumar).

Plot

The executives of the multinational mining corporation Nirvana Group inform Goa-based Krishna Das that his ancestral property in North Kerala, which was leased out to a non-governmental organization (NGO) by his late grandfather, is rich in minerals and can be sold because the lease period has expired. Nirvana Group offers him a large sum of money as an advance on the purchase. The NGO currently runs a tribal school on the property, which is situated inside the Kannadi Forest Range. When Krishna Das and his friend Thanseer visit the property, they are kidnapped by the tribal men and taken to a cave deep in the forest. There, Krishna Das meets the tribal chief Thankachan, who explains to him that he is the descendant of a certain Chirakkal Kelu Nayanar.

In the early 16th century, Portuguese sailors under Vasco da Gama capture a Muslim pilgrim ship and take all the passengers as prisoners. The general of Chirakkal kingdom (northern Kerala), the Kothuwal, sends a Brahmin negotiator and his own son, Kelu (as per the customs of the land), to the captured ship to negotiate the prisoners' release. However, Vasco da Gama rejects their attempt at negotiation, cutting off the negotiator's ears. He then orders that the prisoners be locked in the hold and the ship set on fire. Kothuwal storms into the burning ship to rescue his son, Kelu. Although Kelu escapes, Chirakkal Kothuwal is killed during a fight that ensues. Vavvali, a Tamil Muslim boy, takes the orphaned Kelu with him to his home and treats him as his brother. Kelu crafts an urumi from the leftover ornaments of the dead women and children of the pilgrim ship. He takes an oath to kill Vasco da Gama one day.

Many years later, Kelu and Vavvali are hunting in a forest somewhere in Chirakkal. During their hunt, they rescue the princess of Chirakkal, Bala, from a group of abductors armed with Portuguese pistols, who apparently have been sent by her cousin, Bhanu Vikraman. Under the orders of Bhanu Vikraman, Kelu and Vavvali are captured by the Chirakkal guards at Puthoor Ferry and tried before the king of Chirakkal. During the trial, Bala reveals that the two young men in fact saved her life from the goons. Chenichery Kurup, the king's minister, convinces the king that the abductors might be from the Arakkal kingdom.

Themes

According to director Santosh Sivan, Urumi is his comment on globalization. He adds that the film resonates with people today because corporate lobbies are causing the displacement of indigenous people across the world. "I have travelled across the world while shooting for films and documentaries and I have seen first hand the displacement and exploitation, the side effects of globalization being suffered by the people who live in close contact to nature. The film centers around a similar situation, but it is removed by a few centuries," said Sivan. The film also focuses on a new perspective of storytelling. "History is written by the victors, the powerful who won. So was Vasco da Gama a brave explorer or an invader after gold," he added.

"The film is designed in such a way that it talks about the present and the past. In the past, some people came and exploited our land and it is happening even now. Perhaps the people who lived then are the people who live now. Still we are not united and our progress is not uniform. The film has also portrayed this aspect in a different manner," Sivan pointed out to Jyothsna Bhavanishankar of "Behind the Woods."

Shankar Ramakrishnan, who wrote the story and screenplay for Urumi after conducting extensive research, said that the film presents history from a different perspective. "Even a small child in Kerala perceives Vasco da Gama as an explorer, who made the first-ever colonial invasion in any part of the world. But there's more to him than that. Urumi is an attempt to portray or rather discuss the many realities that could have affected the course of our history," he said. Shankar Ramakrishnan added that the title is not just suggestive of Kelu's weapon urumi, but "the feeling of vengeance that we carry in our hearts."

Key details