This is the season of the supernatural. Part Two of The Conjuring , which released recently, whipped up mass frenzy, and in Malayalam, Jayasurya’s Pretham is having a good run. Prithviraj’s much-talked-about horror flick Ezra too is on the floors.
Horror films as a genre evoke extreme responses—you either love them or hate them. Studies show that some people are just wired to enjoy the adrenalin rush and some are not. But the creeps they give hold good for both.
The strange goings on on the sets of Ezra made news on the Internet. The crew of the film, which is being shot at Fort Kochi, apparently witnessed unusual happenings. Director Jay K., however, refuses to comment on that. His debut feature film, Jay says he didn’t go in search of a horror theme, it just came to him. “I felt it was a story that has to be told.”
While Hollywood offers a routine diet of horror of the blood-curdling, bone-chilling variety, the films made back home are few and far between. Even those that are made fall into sub genres where horror is a backdrop or a narrative tool. However, starting with A. Vincent’s Bhargavi Nilayam (1964) to the most recent Aadupuliyattam (2016) directed by Kannan Thamarakkulam, the list does include a fair share of spooks. Baby’s Lisa (1978) gave the jitters and Fazil’s Manichitrathazhu (1993) gave a whole new dimension to horror. Director Vinayan has explored the possibilities of the genre in many films, combining horror with history, myth and popular culture.
Though our filmmakers have experimented with the genre in their own ways, largely, the Malayalam version of horror has pretty much stuck to the white sari-clad, melancholic-song-singing yakshi , out to seek revenge for the wrongs done to her when alive. But what is wrong with that imagery? asks director Uday Ananthan. “These white-sari clad ghosts are so much a part of our culture, our collective psyche,” he says. His spine chilling Mrityunjayam in the portmanteau film Kerala Cafe left a lingering sense of fear.
A Hollywood-style spooky flick may not work in the Malayalam scheme of things, feels director Ranjith Sankar. “Pure horror is an extremely difficult genre to execute. The way it is explored in Hollywood is different and when the same subject is applied to Malayalam, the cinematic nuances change drastically,” he says.
His Pretham treads the delicate space between horror and humour with other heartening elements such as the camaraderie between the characters. “I had always wanted to direct a horror film. Before I started work for Pretham , I had written about five to six out-and-out horror scripts. I didn’t have the nerve to pursue them for a film as they were too dark and intense. I began Pretham as a horror-comedy as it is a very popular, commercially-viable genre.” he says adding that another film in the same genre would not interest him. That said, Jayasurya’s character, mentalist John Don Bosco, might find himself in other extensions. “Only the tip of the iceberg has been explored. It is a character that has great potential. I’d like to use him later.”
Filmmakers also attribute the lack of fat budgets to the fewer number of spooky films made. Unlike in the past few decades, people are now more exposed to international cinema and expect a certain level of technical perfection, especially when it comes to horror. “This sort of thing involves huge budgets and the Malayalam industry has not reached that stage yet,” says Uday. “I’d love to produce a horror film. The scares in Mrityunjayam were technically nowhere close to what I wanted to show,” he says.
Ezra , set to release in December, however, will be a pure horror-thriller, says Jay.
Extensive studies have been done on the impact of horror films on people. Apparently, watching a horror film can help burn calories. According to the Daily Mail,The Shining , starring Jack Nicholson, burnt an average 184 calories, which is equivalent to the number of calories one can lose in a half-hour walk. Another study suggests that watching horror leads to physiological arousal as the heart rate, blood pressure and respiration increases, thereby heightening any positive emotion that is felt later.
And as for why filmmakers choose to do scary films, it is a hazy combination of economics, thrill and passion. Ranjith says he enjoys watching pure horror, Poltergeist and Omen being his all-time favourites. Uday, on the other hand, says he does not believe in the supernatural and is not easily scared. Mrityunjayam was made just for the fictional beauty of the story.
Love it or not, you have been warned; there are more spooks coming your way.
