Malayalam cinema 2023 has seen a bitter-sweet year. Proving the doomsayers wrong, movie-goers were back in cinemas. So, the pandemic had not killed cinemas. Hallelujah! But, before the trumpets are blown, there is more to explore. All is not rosy as the last frames of the year fade into the sunset.
Although films in the language made a mark with interesting themes, narratives and treatment, barely 20 to 25 of the 217 films released in 2023 managed to get audiences in theatres. Even as Jude Anthany Joseph’s 2018, Everyone Is A Hero broke box office records and got selected as India’s entry to the Oscars, there were several movies that could not be screened due to lack of viewers and theatres. Then there was R Krishand’s Purusha Pretham that premiered on OTT and went on to become one of the most discussed works of the year.
