Vadakkunokkiyantram
Vadakkunokkiyantram (transl. Compass) is a 1989 Indian Malayalam-language psychological drama film written and directed by Sreenivasan who also stars in the film along with Parvathy. The film is about the marital discord caused by a husband's othello syndrome. The film won three Kerala State Film Awards, including Best Film. It was dubbed in Telugu as Sandeham and remade in Tamil as Dindigul Sarathy, in Kannada as Nanjangudu Nanjunda, and in Hindi as Main, Meri Patni Aur Woh.
| Vadakkunokkiyantram | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical poster | |
| Directed by | Sreenivasan |
| Produced by | Toffy Kannara T. C. Mony |
| Written by | Sreenivasan |
| Starring | Sreenivasan Parvathy |
| Music by | Johnson |
| Cinematography | Venu |
| Edited by | N. Gopalakrishnan |
Production company | Kavyakala Film Unit |
| Distributed by | K.R.G. Enterprises |
Release date |
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Running time | 120 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Malayalam |
Plot
Thalathil Dineshan (Sreenivasan) is managing a printing press. He is burdened with insecurities about his short physique and dark complexion. His life spirals out of control after his marriage to Shobha (Parvathy). His insecurities are heightened by the fact that his wife is exceptionally beautiful and is taller than him. Initially he is overprotective of his wife, which worsens his relationship with his brother Prakashan (Baiju). He feels challenged by the charm and wit of his brother, which eventually leads to the eruption of a feud in the family.
Dineshan gradually resorts to tactics which, he feels, will enable him to earn the respect and admiration of Shobha. He finds a new confidante in Thalakulam Sir (Innocent), who gives him immature advice to win the heart of his wife Shobha. He starts drinking, believing that it is a symbol of machismo. He memorizes jokes from a weekly magazine and monotonously delivers them to his wife, so as to appear witty. But all these attempts turn out to be pure antics and he makes a fool of himself.
Shobha, an archetypal wife, is very much devoted to her husband and cannot understand Dineshan's eccentric behavior. He gradually becomes paranoid and starts suspecting his wife. He threatens the brother (Lalu Alex) of Shobha's friend, whom he suspects of having an affair with her. Things spin out of his control when Shobha learns everything. He is even confined to a mental hospital following some incidents resulting from extreme paranoia.
After a brief treatment he appears to be a changed man. Dineshan wins his wife back from her parental home, assuring her of love and care. Now all seem to be fine with them, but again in the dead of the night when his wife is asleep he starts looking out suspiciously in his backyard for his wife's stalker.
Cast
- Sreenivasan as Thalathil Dineshan
- Parvathy Jayaram as Shobha
- Innocent as Thalakulam Sir
- K.P.A.C. Lalitha as Dineshan's Mother
- Baiju as Thalathil Prakashan, Dineshan's brother
- Lalu Alex as Capt. S. Balan
- C. I. Paul as Raghavan Nair, Shobha's father
- Usha as Thankamani, Dineshan's sister
- Bobby Kottarakkara as Sahadevan, worker at the press
- Jagadish as Vinod Kumar Allappey
- Nedumudi Venu as Doctor
- Lissy as Sarala, Shobha's friend
- Sankaradi as Thalathil Chanthu Nair, Dineshan's maternal uncle
- Mamukkoya as Photographer
- Oduvil Unnikrishnan as Policeman
- Sukumari as Shobha's Mother
Reception
The film was a critical as well as commercial success at the box office.