# Agnidevan

Agnidevan (transl. Lord of fire) is a 1995 Indian Malayalam-language family drama film directed by Venu Nagavalli and co-written by P. Balachandran and Nagavalli. It stars Mohanlal and Revathi. The plot deals with the struggle for leadership of a family-owned newspaper firm causing the family to split apart. Agnidevan was released on October 23 during the Diwali holiday period. The film features music composed by M. G. Radhakrishnan.

## Plot

The story is about the conflict between two brothers who share the legacy of "Malayalam Shabdam", a newspaper company owned by their family, the Ezhuthupura Tharavadu . Their roles as the main writers and publishers of a daily newspaper come to the forefront of their rivalry with each other. While one brother Rama Varma a.k.a. 'Appan' has a clinical business-oriented attitude to growing the newspaper industry that he heads, the younger brother Ravi Varma a.k.a. 'Aniyankuttan' feels very emotional and passionate about the craft of writing and reporting. He gives everything to enrich his relationships and cannot understand how to approach it with business goals because writing, in itself, marks tradition, legacy and so much more in their family of distinguished writers, such as their poetess grandmother, Vishwalakshmi Thampuratti, their editor father, K. K. Menon, and their writer cousin, Sudarshana. To add more fuel to the family feud, Appan is manipulated by their company's sinister manager Anantharaman who has ulterior motives to fulfill by capturing the newspaper firm.
The innocent love between Aniyankuttan and Sudhu and Appan's interference in their relation to gain the empire and lady upon the corrupt advices of Anantharaman is accurately depicted in the film. We also get to see the escalating differences between Aniyankuttan's flamboyant and modern mother, who whiles away her time playing rummy and partying with her friends in the ladies' club and supporting her elder son's dictates, and his intellectual and down to earth father- who considers that his life is incomplete without writing. The heart-touching relationship between Aniyankuttan and his grandmother has always stayed in the hearts and minds of the Malayali audience till date. How the younger brother wins his grandmother's and their newspaper's rich legacy by becoming a wealthy liquor baron to take back the company from the hands of Anantharaman is the rest of the film.
The film ends with the grandmother passing away due to her unbearable grief of seeing her family breaking away into pieces due to differences and fights. Anantharaman is beaten up and banished away by Aniyan and his friends when he tries to usurp the grandmother's house. Her death and her burning pyre make Appan and his mother realize their mistakes and unites all the estranged family members once again. Aniyankuttan, after being united with Sudarshana, takes a wow before his beloved grandmother's burning pyre that he will never let the family become disunited.

## Cast

* Mohanlal as Ravi "Aniyankuttan" Varma
* Rohini Hattangadi as Vishwalakshmi Thampuratti ('Muttashi')- the elderly matriarch of the Ezhuthupura family; Aniyankuttan's maternal grandmother
* Ratheesh as Anantharaman
* Revathi as Sudarshana (Sudhu), Aniyankuttan's cousin
* Devan as Rama "Appan" Varma, Aniyankuttan's elder brother
* Bharat Gopy as K. K. Menon, Appan's and Aniyan's father
* Jagadish as Murukan
* Sukumari as Kochammini, Sudhu's mother
* Karamana Janardhanan Nair as Vasudeva Warrier
* Kavitha as Parvathi Varma, Muttasshi's daughter and Aniyankuttan's mother
* Maniyanpilla Raju as Poojari Potti Kunju
* Mala Aravindan as Vijayan, the mahout
* Poojappura Ravi as Payapaddan
* Mohan Jose as Jacob
* Beena Antony as Daughter of Vasudeva Warrier
* P. Balachandran as 'Edakka' Marar
* Captain Raju as Pareed
* T. P. Madhavan as Sathyan, Sudhu's uncle
* Valsala Menon as Ashram Head
* Kollam Ajith as Victor Raj, a goon
* James Stalin as Minister

## Production

The film was shot in Guruvayoor.

## Soundtrack

The film includes songs written by lyricist Gireesh Puthenchery and composed by M. G. Radhakrishnan. The songs became chartbusters especially "Nilavinte Neela Bhasmam" sung by M. G. Sreekumar. The soundtrack album was released by Millennium Audios on 15 October 1995. Puthenchery won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Lyricist for this film.

## Accolades

* Kerala State Film Award for Best Lyricist - Gireesh Puthenchery
* Kerala Film Critics Association Awards' Special Jury Award - Venu Nagavally