How Not To Use Technology In Malayalam Movies

Since the ’90s, computer and internet technology has been a hub of speculation and curiosity among filmmakers in Kerala. I will recall some of the most freaky, spooky or at times, creepy usages of plots involving technology and the internet in Malayalam movies. Enjoy!

Jack n Jill (2022)

Let’s kick off with the best weirdest movie released recently in this genre. As a great fan of Santhosh Sivan’s cinematography skills and direction, I had huge expectations for this movie. It not only turned out to be a disappointment but also had me question whether they meant to show ‘Artificial Acting’ by quoting Artificial Intelligence every ten minutes into the movie.

AI has umpteen capabilities. But our poor AI boy is trapped in a holder-less aluminium suitcase confining his capabilities to a 2D television screen. It doesn’t end there. But, hey, I’m not a film spoiler. So, watch and enjoy. It should have stopped me when “Kim Kim” came out. Ini paranjit endina.

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Kilukkam Kilu Kilukkam (2006)

There is a scene in this movie where a computer software scans the childhood picture of Kavya Madhavan. After running the program, adult Kavya Madhavan‘s picture is shown on the screen revealing her transition over the years. This scene in the movie got the nine-year-old in me excited and amazed at the capabilities of technology which not only transitions but also redesigns the make-over and clothes from a child to the one suitable for a lady, that too, in seconds. There my hunt began. But the closest app I found to the one mentioned here is Face App but the realistic capability of this vintage software still gets me goosebumps.

Salala Mobiles (2014)

Though it claims to be a romcom, it is one of the weirdest movies because it uses technology for the creepiest of reasons. The protagonist Afzal (Dulquer Salman) owns a mobile shop. He has a crush on a girl named Shahana (Nazriya Nazeem). Afzal purchases some mobile tapping application from a tech genius. He then uses it as a virus to tap calls of the customers who come to his shop. His immense efforts finally get to Shahana from tapping her calls soon leads to him learning her “salswabhavam”. In contrast, the others whose calls he taps, use their phone at night only for “kulsithapravarthikal”. Things finally turn out worse for the hero as he gets caught being a cyber-criminal. The entire process of tapping the calls, falling in love with the sweet voice of his crush, listening to her problems and desperately getting hurt is so romanticized in the movie that not only do viewers sympathize with the hero, but they might also feel what he did was right.

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SMS (2008)

This is one of the most complicated movies involving the influence of technology. The whole plot revolves around an SMS sent as a prank. Kichan (Bala) and Indhu (Navya Nair) are lovers. Kichan’s friend sends a flirty SMS from his mobile phone to an unknown number. The rest is history.

Indhu confronts and accuses him of cheating her when she finds the message from his phone. A lot of ruckuses happen and their relationship is ruined. A woman encounters Kichan accusing him of killing her dad. She was the one who received the SMS. Her marriage proposal got cancelled when they found this SMS on her phone. Her dad passed away shortly after due to a heart attack from the shock.

The bombshell SMS reads as follows:

“Hi beauty……….

My cutie……..

How sweet you are………”

 “Thamashayk anelum ingane onnum cinema kadha ezhutharuth”!

These are some of the cringe-worthy Malayalam movies that bombarded us with their overhauling innovations in technology. I know it’s only a small list. You are sure to remember some more old Malayalam movies with great technological angles. Comment below any Malayalam movies that left you astonished with their unrelenting technology plots. Let’s see if there is more to the list.

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