1921 (1988 film)

The film focuses on Mappila bullock cart driver Khader, a retired corporal and World War 1 veteran, and Unni Krishnan, a hardline nationalist revolutionary from a family of upper-caste Hindu Nair landlords. Both men join the brigade of Variyan Kunnathu Kunjahammed Haji, one of the prominent leaders of the 1921 Malabar rebellion. The plot gradually introduces a variety of characters, representing the South Malabar society of the 1920s. The film also touches various social dilemmas which led to the 1921 Uprising, the atrocities committed by the British Indian army and the rebels during the events and the eventual collapse of the rebel unity and organization. ==Cast==

Development The screenplay was written by physical education teacher-turned-scriptwriter T. Damodaran. Damodaran had particular focus on writing political dramas, and had collaborated with Sasi in several successful films previously. The film was produced by Muhammed Mannil. Peter Narakkal was the Production Executive. The film's budget was . T. Damodaran in an interview with India Today in 1988 said that: "A few years back history could have been told as it was in Malayalam cinema but today I have to weave an actual incident in masala form with a larger than life character for the sake of Mammootty." Crew Anil worked as the associate director for the film. Jomon, M. A. Venugopal and Shajoon Kariyal were the assistant directors while M. Sankar oversaw "Action", K. Narayanan was the editor, V. Jayaram was the cinematographer. Sasi "T. V." Mohan was the Production Designer while I. V. Satheesh Babu was the Art director. The set was done by B. R. Rangan and Narayanan. M. O. Devasia did the Makeup, M. M. Kumar was the costumer. Recording and re-recording were carried out by Selvaraj. G. Rajan. == Release ==

The film was publicised by "Gayathri" and was distributed by Mannil Films. In a 2017 The Times of India article, it was written that 1921 "perhaps, remain his [Sasi's] best cinematic work". Box office The film was a commercial success and collected over ₹ 2 crore from the box office and emerged one of the top grossers of the year. However, the film was not very profitable for the producers of the film due to its high production costs. == Accolades ==

The film won: • Kerala State Film Award for Best Film with Popular Appeal and Aesthetic Value in 1988. ==Soundtrack==

The soundtrack was composed by Shyam. The lyrics of the songs in the film were adapted from folklore Malayalam poems by poets such as Moyinkutty Vaidyar (19th century). Independent India's "national song" Vande Mataram, written by Bengali poet Bankim Chandra Chatterjee (1838–1894), is also featured in the film with vocals by K. S. Chithra. Other "playback singers" are Naushad and Vilayil Faseela. ==References==