Mammootty's new avtar

The year 2006 has not been a very good year for Mammootty. Most of his films were poor commercial films in which he tried in vain to look young.

His last good role was all the way back in 2004, with Kazhcha.

Perhaps the failure of this year's films prompted Mammootty to go to serious filmmakers like Kamal (of Perumazhakalam fame). The duo (seen in the picture) will now work together in Karutha Pakshikal, which is scheduled to release this year.

In Karutha Pakshikal, Mammootty sheds his star image and plays a poor Tamilian, who makes a living in a city in Kerala by ironing clothes.

Kamal claims the film is one of his best works so far.

The USP of Karutha Pakshikal, according to Kamal, is the deglamorised role Mammootty played.

Murugan comes to a city in Kerala from a small village in Tamil Nadu to make a living by ironing the clothes of the rich. He has no identity in Kerala -- no ration card or voter ID card. Nobody acknowledges his existence in the city but he is essential to all who live there.

His wife, played by Padmapriya, dies during her third childbirth leaving him to take care of his three small children -- Mayil, Azhagappan and the blind Malli. After the death of his wife, Murugan brings them to Kerala.

Padmapriya made her debut in Malayalam as Mammootty's wife in Blessey's Kazhcha. This is their fourth film together.

Murugan has a special love for Malli (debutante Malavika Nair) because she is blind and also as she could not enjoy her mother's love. Her world is the one explained to her by her father. She sees how he sees the world.

Every night, Murugan tells her of the stars in the sky. She knows about flowers, colours, people, God -- all through the eyes of her father.

Murugan has only one desire in his life -- to bring light to his daughter.

Then comes to the locality a lady, who is in the secondary stage of cancer. Her marital life also had not been smooth as she never had a good relationship with her husband. So, it was a kind of escapism for this lady.

Murugan collects clothes from her house for ironing, and she forms a bond with his blind daughter. Later, she tells Murugan that when she dies, she wants to donate her eyes to the girl.

This puts him in a dilemma. Though he prays for her long life, he wants his daughter to gain sight.

The lady is cured but the good man that Murugan is, he does not get unhappy though his dream for his daughter gets shattered.

But the film ends even more tragically. Though the lady dies in the end, her husband refuses to part with her eyes.

"I want to highlight the injustices that are being heaped by the Kerala society on these poor labourers," Kamal explained.