Pazhassi Raja demands 50% hike in ticket rate

Even if Pazhassi Raja has not seen the light of the day, the movie has already gathered much attention, thanks to its consistent delay and other problems. Now the hottest news from their side is the request by the producers of the Malayalam movie Pazhassi Raja, Gokulam Gopalan to the Kerala Government to increase the ticket rate of the film by 50 percent.

The hike in ticket price has been asked for because the budget of this magnum opus has scaled as much as Rs 25 crore. The Government will then have to issue a special GO, a custom which has been observed earlier also with regard to many other movies. To recover as much as at least a sizeable fraction of the budget the producers are demanding a hike in the ticket rates in Kerala.

Though many reasons have been attributed to the delay in the release of the movie, the latest reason is undoubtedly the issue of the hike in the ticket price. The CPM government in Kerala has not been in favour of an increase in the ticket rates as it will have its effect on the common people. Pazhassi Raja written by MT Vasudevan Nair and directed by Hariharan has Mammootty in the lead role.

User Comments

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eyeopener 23 Oct 2009 11:41 pm

critical malayalee, from what you are saying i understand is that you are talking about the erstwhile kottayam district in south kerala. but let me point out that you are out of context here as Pazhassi Raja belonged to the Kottayam kovilakam which is totally NOT related to the present kottayam district. Kottayam Rajas ruled over some part of Kannur and wayanad districts before the British. Their territory was called Kottayam before someone named the Kottayam in south Kerala as the same. If you travel to a place called Kuthuparamba in Kannur district you can see the present day kovilakam. you stand corrected.

Critical Malayali 08 Oct 2009 10:38 am

From the videos on Internet, Pazhassi Raja is shown in the garb of a Nambudiri Brahmin cum Pandyan Tamil king. He plays the Veena like Tamil Brahmins and rides horses, wears Roman armour and fights like British trained soldiers.

Critical Malayali 07 Oct 2009 10:16 am

Muslim rulers of Mysore, Haider Ali and his son Tippu Sultan, had started to annexe areas in North Kerala (to be known as Malabar District during British Raj) starting in the year 1766, and by the year 1792 had annexed all parts of North Kerala and some parts of central Kerala (especially Palakkad). The Hindu rulers sought the help of British to oust the Muslim rule from Mysore. Thus by the year 1795, the parts annexed by Haider Ali and his son Tippu Sultan, became Malabar District of Madras Presidency under direct rule of the British. The rest of Kerala consisted of two princely states - Cochin in central Kerala and Travancore in the South. The British concentrated on developing Madras into a cosmopolitan city and centre of learning because it was their administrative centre for all of South India. British missionaries, CMS in upper Travancore and LMS in lower Travancore are responsible for the great English education and press. Introduction of rubber by the British in Kottayam-Pathanamthitta made the region rich in no time. Kottayam remained the greatest exporter of rubber in the British Empire. Thus the prominence of Kottayam does not have anything to do with any non existent Kottayam Royal Family, but to do with English education started by British missionaries, the press and wealth generated by rubber starting 1806. Before that the Dutch had planted tea.

Critical Malayali 06 Oct 2009 05:51 pm

If the Pazhassi Raja team is only wanting to hike the price of tickets for its Malayalam version in Kerala, then it can't have anything to do with Shah Ruck Khan, who has dubbed a 45 second introduction only for the Hindi version. Apologies for making a rash statement about SRK.

Critical Malayali 06 Oct 2009 02:18 pm

English schools, English colleges, press and wealth due to rubber, does not create a Kottayam Royal Family. Kottayam did not exist until 1754, and even when it was created it was part of the kingdom of Travancore.

Critical Malayalee 06 Oct 2009 02:15 pm

South Kerala, the erstwhile princely state of Travancore, became very powerful during British Raj because of English education introduced by CMS missionaries in upper Travancore and LMS missionaries in lower Travancore starting 1806, with the permission of the king of Travancore. Plantation of tea by the Dutch and rubber by the British led to immense wealth in a short time. The establishment of the first press in Kottayam, apart from the first CMS college made Kottayam a place of literacy and wealth in the shortest time. Kottayam remains the biggest exporter of rubber in India.

Critical Malayali 06 Oct 2009 02:11 pm

The language spoken in the region of Kerala is known as Malayalam, hence a Malayali is one who speaks Malayalam. It is because the region of Kerala consisted of separate kingdoms, which had nothing to do with each other, until the state of Kerala was formed in 1956, that Malayalis from the original separate kingdoms feel almost like different nationals.

Critical Malayali 06 Oct 2009 02:07 pm

It must be emphasized that natives of the state of Kerala do not refer to themselves as Keralites but as Malayalis. Why? What the people of Kerala have in common is their language. The state of Kerala was formed along linguistic lines only in 1956. Until then the region of Kerala consisted of several small independent kingdoms. During British Raj it had been consolidated into three - princely state of Travancore in the South, Princely State of Cochin in central Kerala and the region annexed by Tippu Sultan in North Kerala which was known as Malabar District, the only part of Kerala directly administered by the British from far away in Chennai (then known as Madras). All of South India was administered from Madras by the British. It was not because the Tamils had a single kingdom covering all of South India.

Critical Malayali 06 Oct 2009 12:31 pm

If the promoters of the movie had made no historical claim, it would have been a simple matter to appreciate the movie. Like Bollywood megahit "Lagaan." But when historical claims are made, they need to be real and not propaganda. Some member of the Pazhassi Raja family is involved in promoting the film. In Kannur, there is a college run by Syro MALANKARA (NOT Malabar) Catholic Church (a church first formed in Thiruvalla of Kottayam in 1930)which goes by the name Pazhassi Raja College. Where does it add up?

Critical Malayali 06 Oct 2009 12:23 pm

Promoters of the movie Pazhassi Raja, need to give exact details of his place of origin and the name of his kingdom if he had any. Kottayam Royal Family didn't exist. The state of Kerala was formed only in 1956, so there could not have been a "Kerala Veera Varma" in 1797. There were no kings in North Kerala, Malabar District, by the name of Varma. The kings of Travancore in the south and Cochin in central Kerala had kings with the names Varma. The famous king of Cochin was known as Rama Varma and the famous king of Travancore was known as Marthanda Varma.

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