In Mohanlal’s latest release Kanupapa where he plays Jayaram, a visually-impaired character, he is a lift-operator, teaches Kalaripayattu, plays the violin, sings like a dream and has a crack at a Punjabi number too. He hears better than an average human and given all his abilities, the need for any sympathy is eliminated from the picture. So is the case of spirited Rohan Bhatnagar from Kaabil ; despite his inability to see, he outsmarts the baddies Amit Shellar and Madhavrao Shellar to seek revenge. In Nagesh Kukunoor ’s Dhanak , ït’s hard not to connect with Chotu, beautifully essayed by the child artiste Krrish Chhabria.
All these films with chirpy commercial elements received warm public responses, a Tamil film Cuckoo that had two visually-challenged protagonists falling in love, went onto win a National Award. ( Oppam -the Malayalam version of Kanupapa was a success, while the Telugu version tanked) The positive and vibrant portrayal of these characters is a marked departure from the eerie stereotypes that films have otherwise reduced them to.
Films are a reflection of the society, adds writer-director Mahesh Kathi. “Change comes across when the society turns sensitive about the way they treat the differently abled. We don’t call people blind any more, they are visually challenged. Most directors who take the middle path do well to add nuances. Actors too take it all the more seriously now, they are trying their best to live their roles.”
Actor Vikram played a character whos loses his eyesight in Siva Thandavam and is reported to be donning the lead role of a visually impaired man in a Tamil remake of the Hollywood film Don’t Breathe.
“A few decades ago, many actors considered such parts a dream,” Mahesh feels, adding that with actors like Ravi Teja and Raj Tarun playing visually impaired roles in Raja-The Great and Andagadu that the trend might return.
Producer-director Tammareddy Bharadwaj has a different take on this trend: “ We have always had strong visually-impaired characters even in the past, sample NTR’s portrayal in the 1956-starrer Chiranjeevulu , for a brief portion in Raktha Sambandham , Laya’s good job in Preminchu for a similar role won her a Nandi Award.” .
However these and also Kamal Haasan’s role in Amavasya Chandrudu or Sarvadaman Banerjee in Sirivennela, though strong, were overshadowed by the melodramatic treatment.
Even for Srinivas Murthy, the executive producer of Kanupapa in Telugu, it was the novelty of the theme that convinced him to dub regionally. “It was Priyadarshan’s comeback film in Malayalam and I was bowled over by the way he approached a subject that was quite universal. What convinced me also was the actor’s adeptness in essaying the character, similar to what he played in the Telugu-dubbed film Yodha .”
At a time when staying true to the sensitivities of particular community is a widely debated issue, the trend, despite commercial liberties, is a welcome one.
