https://doi.org/10.67147/literariness.v1i2.074
Cinema’s New Normal: How Certain South Indian Films Adapted to Pandemic-Induced Changes
HEMA M
Research Scholar
Research and PG Department of English
The Zamorin’s Guruvayurappan College
Affiliated to University of Calicut, Kerala
Abstract: The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 had a significant impact on all walks of life, and the film industry was no exception. This paper attempts to trace the ways in which the Malayalam and Tamil film industries responded to the “new normal” of limited resources and new forms of content consumption, and how they adopted innovative modes of storytelling. The South Indian film industry adapted the form of cinema to work within and move beyond the restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Theatres were closed during the lockdown, and there was a significant increase in the number of people subscribing to OTT platforms.
Films such as Joji, Sunny, C U Soon, and Putham Pudhu Kaalai were produced with limited budgets, restrictions on cast and crew availability, and limitations on shooting locations. Joji, inspired by William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, adapts the play into a narrative centred on a wealthy family living in an isolated countryside setting. A close examination of this adaptation reveals how scriptwriter Shyam Pushkaran and director Dileesh Pothan transformed production constraints into narrative strengths, resulting in a critically acclaimed film.
Sunny, a film centred on a single character, and C U Soon are further examples of productions that maximised the storytelling possibilities of cinema while limiting the number of central characters. C U Soon is particularly notable for its technical experimentation, having been shot entirely on an iPhone and released directly on OTT platforms. Both films integrate pandemic realities into their narratives: Sunny portrays the experience of isolation, while C U Soon explores contemporary digital life. Similarly, Putham Pudhu Kaalai, set against the backdrop of the twenty-one-day lockdown of March 2020, experiments with storytelling through the anthology format.
This paper explores how the art of filmmaking was transformed by the pandemic and how filmmakers worked within unprecedented restrictions to discover new ways of telling stories. It also examines the technical innovations adopted during this period and the changes in the modes of film distribution and audience consumption.
Keywords: Pandemic, OTT, Malayalam films, Tamil films, COVID-19 cinema
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