‘Kaakamuttai,’ ‘Manu Uncle’ won National Awards. Jury's critique of film quality unfair: Vinesh Viswanath

Prakash Raj, the chairperson of this year's Kerala State Film Awards jury, has sparked a debate with his recent comments about the quality of children’s films being produced in Mollywood. His statement has not been well received by some on social media, including Vinesh Viwanath, the director of Sthanarthi Sreekuttan. Viwanath criticized the jury’s decision to dismiss the efforts of young actors who worked hard to portray a range of roles in films this year.

Viwanath pointed out that their film was overlooked for a children’s award, allegedly because it was not censored as a children’s movie. He argued that if the jury is using this as the reason, it contradicts the success of films like Manu Uncle and Kaakamuttai, which, though not explicitly children’s films, went on to win National Awards. He questioned whether the jury would similarly dismiss prestigious awards like Best Actor or Best Actress under the same logic.

“We did not censor our movie as a children’s film because the producers were concerned it might impact OTT sales,” Viwanath explained. “Given such considerations, shouldn’t the government rethink the rules and criteria?”

He expressed his disappointment with the jury's stance, particularly the decision to not acknowledge the performances of young actors who gave their best in films such as ARM and Kishkinda Kandam. Viwanath also criticised the jury's blanket statement that no one was deserving of the Kerala State Award for Best Actor or Actress this year. If the quality of their film was a concern, he felt the jury should not have dismissed the young actors’ contributions so lightly.