John Abraham | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1937-08-11)11 August 1937 |
| Died | 31 May 1987(1987-05-31) (aged 49) |
| Alma mater | Mar Thoma College, Tiruvalla Film and Television Institute of India |
| Occupation(s) | Film director, screenwriter |
| Notes | |
"A Wonder in World Cinema" –Adoor Bhasi | |
John Abraham (11 August 1937 – 31 May 1987) was an Indian filmmaker,short story writer and screenwriter who worked mainly inMalayalam cinema. His filmAmma Ariyan (1986) was the only South Indian feature film to make the list of "Top 10 Indian Films" of all time byBritish Film Institute.[3]Agraharathil Kazhuthai was listed among the "100 Greatest Indian Films" of all time byIBN Live's 2013 poll.[4]
John Abraham was born inChennamkary,Kuttanadu in 1937. He is from the Vazhakkat branch,Chennamkary of the Pattamukkil Family.[1][2] He completed his intermediate studies inCMS College Kottayam staying with his grandfather, who nurtured John's talent in his early days. After completing his degree in (history and politics) fromMar Thoma College, Tiruvalla, he worked as a private college teacher and latter he joined as anoffice assistant withLife Insurance Corporation of India inUdupi, Karnataka.[citation needed] After that he joined theFTII,Pune and there he met film-makers such asRitwik Ghatak andMani Kaul. John graduated out of theFTII with gold medals in screenwriting and film direction. He entered the film industry working as anassistant director to Mani Kaul for the filmUski Roti (1969, Hindi).[5] He has worked for someHindi projects that was shot inKerala, but none were released. John's first attempt in direction came in 1967 namedVidyarthikale Ithile Ithile. It was theTamil filmAgraharathil Kazhuthai (1977) that gave John recognition.[6]
John entered the film industry working as anassistant director to Mani Kaul for the filmUski Roti (1969, Hindi).[5] He has worked for someHindi projects that was shot inKerala, but none were released. John's first attempt in direction came in 1967 namedVidyarthikale Ithile Ithile. It was theTamil filmAgraharathil Kazhuthai (1977) that gave John recognition.[6]
He completed only four films, namelyVidyarthikale Ithile Ithile (1972),[7]Agraharathil Kazhuthai (1977, Tamil),Cheriachante Krurakrithyangal (1979,[8][9]Malayalam) andAmma Ariyan (1986,Malayalam).[10]
Under John, theOdessa Collective came into existence in 1984 with a street drama inFort Kochi namedNayykali (The game of dogs).Odessa was an attempt by a group of movie enthusiasts to change the history of film production and distribution by making it a collaborative effort with the public and thus act as an empowering and liberating medium.[11] For the financing of the first film produced by Odessa, John and his friends travelled through villages and collected money from the general public.[12] Odessa also collected funds for the film by screeningCharlie Chaplin'sThe Kid. The film,Amma Ariyan (Report to mother) (1986) was exhibited across the state ofKerala on a non-commercial basis,[13] an initiative kept alive, after John's death, by his colleague and co-founder of Odessa Collective,Odessa Sathyan.[14]
He started shooting a documentary based on the life ofE.M.S. Namboodiripad, but never completed it.[15]
The media called himOttayan (The LoneTusker).[16]
He has left behind a number of complete and incomplete scripts. A collection of his stories had been published under the title Nerchakkozhi. Another collection of his stories has been published posthumously under the titleJohn Abrahaminte Kathakal by Pakshikkottam Books,Thiruvananthapuram in 1993.[17]
On 30 May 1987 John was admitted to theKozhikode Medical College hospital following his fall from a house top after a party. He was not identified by the hospital authorities, and allegedly not given due attention and medical care, which caused his condition to deteriorate, leading to his death on 31 May.[18] Following the allegations of medical negligence, a departmental inquiry was conducted into the incident. 26 years after John's death, social activistB. Ekbal who was a surgeon at the Kozhikode Medical College when John was admitted for treatment, revealed that the director could have been saved if his identity was known to the doctors at the time of admission. He said the doctors at the casualty did not know John and mistook him for a film representative when he said that he was a filmmaker. In a Facebook post, Ekbal said the doctors failed to diagnose internal bleeding suffered by John and to check his blood pressure which could have prevented him from slipping into a shock through a timely surgery.[19]
According to one reviewer, John Abraham has influenced an entire generation of filmmakers to think and create content beyond the ordinary. He's one of the founding fathers of Independent Cinema in Malayalam.[24]
TheFederation of Film Societies of India – Kerala instituted theJohn Abraham Award for Best Malayalam Film in 1998. The John Abraham National Awards for Documentary and Short Features are awarded since 2005 for the best documentary and short feature screened in the SIGNS, festival organised byFederation of Film Societies of India – Kerala.[25]
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: untitled periodical (link)| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
