OTTAAL ( 2014) | KAIROS GLOBAL | OCTOBER 2021

Author:  Noel Benno

Ottal (meaning the trap) is the intimate tale of a boy’s (Kuttappayi) relationship with his grandfather (a duck herder called Vallyappachayi). Directed by Indian filmmaker, Jayaraj, this movie adapted from Anton Chekov’s Vanka was the winner of the Crystal Bear award at the Berlin Film Festival. Set in the picturesque Kuttanad of Alappuzha¹ district, the movie touches various chords like environmental conservation, Dalit Christianity, child labour, ageing, the traps of inequality and marginalisation, to mention a few.

Capturing the nuances of the culture of Kuttanad, from the idle talks in local shops to the postman who never has a letter for the village, the cinematography by M J Radhakrishnan makes each frame lyrical and breath-taking. Watching Ottal is like travelling through the backwaters of Kuttanad, not in a five-star houseboat, but in a ramshackle canoe listening to the chirpings of the ducks and looking at its starlit skies. The sheer simplicity of life, often riddled with nuances of day-today life has been captured with great amount of detail and is a treat to everyone who approaches movies with an eye for details. 

Throughout the movie, one is bound to be mesmerised by Kuttappayi’s unfailing love for his Vallyappachayi, their friendship and how they care for each other. As the movie makes slow progress into the plot, the viewers are assured a tale that not only portrays life at the margins of our social spectrum, but also poses a great deal of questions some of which are unanswered even as the movie ends.  It is worthwhile looking at the film through the lens of the Catholic social teaching². All seven themes of Catholic social teaching find great relevance in the film, with an added emphasis on the dignity of work and the rights of workers, rights and responsibilities, care for God's creation and call to family, community and social participation.

The citation of the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK), where, Ottal bagged four major awards, summed up its appeal: ‘Its strong cinematic language, interweaving local and planetary concerns; humankind’s relationship to nature and nurture and child human right — all grounded in a deep honest connection to culture and place.’

The lived realities of this ‘Venice of the East³’, often muted in the noise of the signature ad campaigns of ‘God’s Own Country⁴’, finds expression in this movie. I’m sure this movie won’t disappoint you and will definitely make you think.