,,,by consent of His Highness the Maharajah Uthram Thirunal,,,
,,,at 5 hours and 30 minutes past midnight,,,
The crimes he is guilty of,,,
Would His Highness kindly come to the balcony?
And more are on the way
,,,with permission to bury him as perrhes
From the folk tales,,,
For as long as the land of Malayalam exists
,,,and this is his story!
Thief! Thief!
- Go that way! Come! -And let us go this way!
Search him! Right there!
The injury from the kicking is deep inside
,,,on the order ofthe Adhikari
Tell him to mend his ways now
Go to some other place and save yourself
I don't want to go anywhere! I won't!
Some places, | stay a while and teach
And if it is Thangal teaching, pupils will come from far and wide
We would be happy to see it put to use
Who are you?
- lam hungry! - Get out! Out!
And where are you off to now?
What are you saying, Syedali?
How can he,,,
Upon my guarantee
I won't steal
I didn't ask for a plantain
Can you put my list on your pay too?
8 kilograms of rice,,,3 kilograms of beaten rice
How many of you are there at home?
Omar Khasi Thangal has started a school of Kalari across the river
It's been a while since his last visit
Move! Move away!
Come on! Seal it!
lam an uppercaste Nair, I draw water from this well
You call yourself a Nair but want to draw water polluted by a Chovan?
To us it is poison! And as long as we are around,,,
,,,push a Brahmin inside to make it pure again!
Leave me!
,,,how come you were not scared?
Leave me at the dock
Four mouthsto feed,,,and on top ofthat - tax!
- Don't Brahamins have to pay tax? - No
-And who wrote that? - The Brahmins themselves!
But they also side with the upper castes
Sahibs, indeed!
If only | knewthe language,,,
Look ahead
If I am not back before dark, do come and look for me
- It is an expression of gratitude - Ok
(Translator repeats)
You can ask him for something you want
,,,we hear music and dancing every night
,,,seek out wonders
Where dance and song,,,
Aah,,,my lady,,,
Aah,,,dear lady,,,
,,,that rustle my drapes,,,
,,,the entire Universe,,,
Aah,,,my lady,,,
My magical lips,,,
As | sway,,,
Who will taste this sweetness?
lam the heady night that will leave you in raptures
Where dance and song,,,
Aah,,,dear lady,,,
,,,that rustle my drapes,,,
Aah,,,my lady,,,
What do you want?
,,,wanted to ask if he could teach me
- There! - Ok
,,,you could be laid up for years!
lt'sjustthat you have a handsome face
-Your name? - Kochunni
l have no parents, That's how I came here
Kottukulangara,,,is not unfamiliar to me
If I teach you, what if you turn out greaterthan him?
(Thangal giving Kalari instructions)
"Kochunni, my son,,,
"What more can you learn here?"
- He really said that? - Of course he did!
Of course I taught them!
And the third from here
,,,and 'marukadakam'
I saw some medicinal herbs here
Even if he did not really mean that,,,
And we can charge him for it!
Can you hide and watch to learn?
Not now! If you come in the daylight and someone sees you,,,
If you plan to come, starttoday
I wonder if the boat is available at that time
Kochunni does not need a boat to cross the Thrikkunnappuzha
She is the deceased Syedali lkka's daughter, Suhra
We grew up together
Where are you going at this hour?
He's up to no good, lam sure!
Huh?
(Keshavan giving instructions)
Are you planning to try that on me?
In your caste, women can have upto twelve lovers, right?
True and heartfelt love
Without such a reassurance, I wouldn't,,,
We leave at dawn and return only after three days
l,,,am a Muslim
We leave at the crack of dawn
But when you start on a journey,,,
(Kalari instructions as chorus)
The beauty of Kalari, in your deft moves | see,,,
I seek the brimming chalice of dreams in your eye,,,
As I am beside you, woman of mystery
I saw no name such as yours
New dreams blossom on the vine of life,,,
,,,like drops of dew,,,
The beauty of Kalari, in your deft moves | see,,,
,,,oh! hero of the Land of Cheras
,,,does not adorn your hand
Your pearl-touched lips,,,
,,,do not hum strains ofOppana
Knowthis, my love,,,
,,,has nipped the buds of my youth
Your hands fragrant with oil,,,
My sweetness,,,my song,,,
,,,to wash over you like a wave
,,,oh! hero ofthe land of Cheras
,,,standing tenderly, Janaki
Silence!
Come down! Whoever you are!
Enough!
You learn by obeying and serving your Guru
So you started off by placing an offering at herfeet?
She is the woman I intend to marry
Keshava!
It's an auspicious day
,,,has been answered
Seven years ago, when ljoined you as a pupil,,,
It is the divine moment when the Guru has found his successor
,,,is a burden in that moment
Next you may ask me to salute the miracle
And not for a friendly duel,,,for a battle
I don't want anything
But affection cannot stand in the way of destiny
You are destined for greatness
You will not fail
I don't think I can handle this!
God is with us!
If it's a treasure,,,shouldn't we send it to the King?
,,,and we will be left watching
Riches don't come ourway everyday
It's up to you to decide what we should do
Of all the Cheruma boys who keep the distance of purity from us,,,
Uh,,,there's a lot under there
Four days from today is the start ofthe temple festival
It's not a small task,,,so you may ask
l,,,would like to have a gram of gold
Tell them they can set the date
Could your Lordhips please do that?
They are poor people,,,they will be really happy
,,,would like to marry a Shudra girl
Upon God,,,upon my Master!
- How much is this? - Two paise
This,,,l got it for you
Tell me the truth,,,l won't tell anyone
-Tell me! - Kochunni!
We need to set a date for the wedding
,,,I will put a gram of gold in your hands
And how can we send her off without a necklace or ear rings?
Just pay him, will you? Come on, girl!
East side ofthe river
Me,,,l have friends,,,
I can get her some jewelry too! And give some of this to my Master
,,,shall be given 190 lashes of the whip,,,
,,,deprived of food and water,,,
Let Menon say so if it is untrue
Fortunately, I was home
Speak, woman! When you last met him,,,
Speak!
What about his side ofthe story?
You beat him unconscious and,,,
Then you can start issuing orders!
,,,we need your consent too
It will heal faster!
Especially those branded as thieves by others
Where are we going?
This can take you anywhere
Banished persons,,,are pelted with stones till the border
Some run into the forest and get eaten by wild animals
But He also keeps his distance from poor folk
Don't look for her
Die!
When I heard of a boy who stopped a foreigner touching a low caste woman,,
Anyone can die
You should return
,,,be that! Be the terror of Kayamkulam,,,
,,,they punished you by whipping you and tying you upside down!
,,,the bloody sons of privilege,,,
There is only one life
There is no Heaven! Or Hell!
,,,is for each one of us to decide
Turn around!
Thirsting for blood, a deadly dance ensues
To put an end to treachery and evil
With fire raging in his eyes
An icon of darkness
And even the Sun and Moon pale before him
Rise on in valour!
Make your move, once more!
Let them take everything!
Don't let him get away!
Mommy! Mommy!
-Get him! - Get the thief!
My babies!
lt's God's Grace the children were found unharmed
What if we show them who we are?
Showthem all!
Fear not, Master!
,,,shall cry of hunger in this land
The Law of Kochunni!
As long as there is hunger in this world,,,
Come on!
It's time for me to go to another such place
They'll be your men now
l have only one regret
I've heard of it,,,from the hunters
Are you a trader or something?
,,,the sound of the bamboo groves when the wind blows through them
,,,can't bear to watch
Please bury him
Him!
He is injured on the neck
You may go! lwill stay here
Try to be out of the forest before nightfall
"Whosoever shall come to the Palace with this,,,
,,,shall have one wish fulfilled,
Where are you taking them?
,,,we accidentally touched Vishnu Nam boothiri's palanquin
lfwe personally come before him and apologise,,,
Out with the truth or my knife will be in yourtummy
"Whoever touches a Brahmin or his belongings,,,
If you ever force me to come here again,,,
The dreaded bandit Kayamkulam Kochunni,,,
,,,be cautious
Keep them locked in safe places
For bringing him alive, eighteen
,,,in front of all the people of this land,,,
,,,we have our ancestral temple
,,,we need your help
Since they are war-trained,,,
It should remain secret
When we take over the goods, you will be paid the agreed amount
,,,who betrayed the Christ
Like a wild beast,,,
You don't need to beg before any landlord for that
Get new clothes forthe kids
A place for tired cart drivers and labourers,,,
l have started work on it,,,just the roof remains
And you? 3 cups of grain, 5 paise and atummyfull of hunger!
,,,Suhra's door has turned into one that anyone can knock on, at any time
Kochu Pillai is in charge of the preparations for the festival
Hmm
The question is for you, Keshavan!
Don't kill me, please!
That's what people say
And it isn'tjust Kochunni!
I've heard he targets upper caste people
l have put my sacred thread in my dhothi fold till I cross thejungle!
Let me get going! lfyou hear me screaming please do come!
Oh yes!
There is a special pooja at the temple tomorrow at dawn
-Ask me why? - Why?
,,,l have also learned some Karali
No!
Please accept what I give, wholeheartedly
,,,you gave a bowl full of tasty rice gruel
You can do whatever you want for the people you care about
And we will decide what to do with it
ls Vavvakad your father's property that you can order us away?
l was just getting to sleep after some work on my house,,,
,,,will drop you there
I didn't mean to create any trouble between you
Where?
The Englishman bought me from them
lcameto ask for help
Without spending at least a night there,,,
The eastern one is guarded only at night
,,,in the western wing, isthe Sahib's room
l have not loved anyone,,,
But, after I had my hair chopped and got stoned out ofthis land,,,
Not the Adhikari who banished me,,,
The biggest thief ever in this land!
No courtyard gates need to be shut anymore
,,,no one needs to fear, day or night
Henceforth in Kayamkulam,,,
At least now we can go around without fear
A guard at the police station told me
He is said to have learned complicated martial arts techniques somewhere
Whatever you might say, there was something about Kochunni!
,,,criminals need expect no mercy
,,,the Maharajah Shri Uthram Thirunal,,,
,,,the bandit, by any means till date,,,
,,,where he shall return the official symbols of his position
But I need your support for that
Whether as wages or otherwise
,,,God has to appear!
But we've been told not to give you even a grain of rice
From tomorrow they have ordered us not to use this way when bringing goods
He has a wife and kid back in England
Shouldn't we stop him, Thangal? With the rules of Kalari?
,,,stop him
But you wil send him to the gallows, won't you?
I shall personally request the Diwan,,,
,,,to make itjust three years
,,,in any human being
The person who knows exactly which one it is,,,
Kochunni is here! Kochunni is here!
Kochunni is here!
Everyone is at Kochu Pillai's house Let's go this way
That's how you should address him now
For them, it was money to last for the rest of their lives
When you are out in three years, this land will be transformed!
Take him away!
If I didn't, they would kill you!
In this, the year 1034,,,
,,,hereby decrees that,,,
,,,is sentenced,,,to death by hanging
The Book says they are to be done by the closest kin
He has made a rule that no one can see him in the prison,,,
lfonly I had a chance to tell him it wasn't so,,,
Thangal,,,!
This will not change his sentence
,,,I can at least see him once
For sure!
You may bring him
His Majesty, the King wants to see you
- The arrangements? -All done
Show him
As you say, Highness
I know
,,,or any troops of the Thana
,,,it is only Thangal himself
,,,there is a face I see in my mind
,,,I am glad I could see it once more
,,,And a murderer
Till I knew that he was God,,,to the hungry
For being my pupil
Shall I recite the Salath for you?
Live long, our homes and heritage
Kochunni of Kayamkulam - may you live long
Live long, our soil and trees
Live long, our land and its towns,,,
Live long, our forests and fields
May our hearths and baskets be full
Live long, water and air
Kochunni of Kayamkulam - may you live long
,,,ever since you chose him over me,,,
,,,as your successor,,,
Starting off with a 'Ganapathy Ankam' and moving into a 'Garuda karanam',,,
You wouldn't be able to do it in seven lifetimes, Keshavan!
Standing forthe poor and hungry,,,
Kayamkulam Kochunni!