Title of film : Sword of Liberty
Cast & crew :
Producer : R C Suresh
Editor : Ajay Kuyiloor
Cast :
Synopsis : ‘The Sword of Liberty, the Life and Death of Velu Thambi Dalawa’ uses an unconventional narrative to recap the story of a legend. Marionettes dance in the shadows and spin the chronicle of an extraordinary personality, a man who fought for his homeland, long before the seeds of nationalism were sown in India. The protagonist, Devaki, journeys from the laid-back, picturesque, Nanjinadu territory, to the distant Kilimanoor Palace, in pursuit of the Dalawa stories she had learnt as a child from her father. Her path crosses those of puppeteers, artists and historians and interweaves indigenous art forms like ‘Tholpaavakoothu’, the diverse forms of ‘Thullal’, and ‘Villupattu’, to narrate prominent anecdotes and little-known snippets from Velu Thambi’s life. Touching places significant to his life and death, the film engages the viewer in the unravelling of a saga: a nineteen-year-old confidant of the king, who finally goes on to become one of Travancore’s most celebrated leaders. Velu Thambi’s initial association and later hostility with the British, his success and failure as a Dalawa, his famous ‘ Kundara Vilambaram’ which called forth the masses to unite against the British, and his self-annihilation, are a few of the many incidents covered in this tribute to Velu Thambi, the immortal hero.
