State film awards: ‘Vasanthi’ best film, Suraj best actor

Thiruvananthapuram: The 50th state film awards declared on Tuesday generously rewarded debut features and experimental films from parallel film stream. ‘Vasanthi’ directed by Rahman brothers (Shinos Rahman and Sajas Rahman), a tale about endurance and survival of a woman against odds, won the best film award. ‘Kenjira’ directed by Manoj Kana won the award for second best feature. The film which delved into serious issues plaguing tribal lives was noted for its social relevance and honest portrayal.

Lijo Jose Pellissery won the award for best director for ‘Jallikettu’ that had created ripples in festival circuits. Suraj Venjaramoodu who made everyone take notice with his moving performances in ‘Android Kunjappan’ and ‘Vikruthi’ was chosen as the best actor. Kani Kusruti who did the lead role in Sajin Baabu’s bold and provocative ‘Biriyani’ won the award for best actress.

Fahadh Faasil was adjudged the best character actor for his psychotic, self-obsessed role in ‘Kumbalangi Nights’. Swasika Vijaya who featured in low budget parallel film ‘Vasanthi’ won the award for best character actress. The jury noted that she was being awarded for the heart rending expression of intense attempts of a woman to survive.

Rahman brothers also bagged the award for best screenplay while Shahul Aliyaar won the award for best story for the film ‘Vari — The Sentence’. Prathap P Nair who did the camera for ‘Idam’ and ‘Kenjira’ was chosen as the best cinematographer. The jury headed by Madhu Ambat said the fact that 50% of entries were debut films inspired hope for Malayalam cinema. The jury said that there were a lot of experimental movies and it takes forward the language and style of Malayalam cinema.

The awards were declared by minister for cinema and culture A K Balan through online news conference. He said that awards will be distributed in December and he lauded the jury for efforts taken to accomplish the task despite challenges posed due to Covid-19.