DUBAI, 18 August 2007 — Arabi Katha (An Arabian Tale), which illustrates the lifestyle of labor class expatriates as well as the inner politics in Kerala’s communist party, premiered at Concord Cinema in Sharjah on Thursday.
Film’s hero Sreenivasan, heroine Chang Su Min, director Lal Jose, screenplay writer Dr. Iqbal Kuttippuram, and Gulf-based artistes who acted in the film — K.P.K. Vengara, K.K. Moideen Koya, Atlas Ramachandran, Satheesh Menon, Basheer Abdulla and Albert Alex were present at the ceremony.
“We have tried to illustrate the real situation of expatriates. Many in Kerala are unaware about the exact situation in the Gulf ...but they dream a lot from there,” film director Lal Jose told Arab News after the premiere.
Arabi Katha, which talks about life in Gulf and Communism, is an instant hit as it topped the charts in Kerala. Interestingly, the screenplay writer Dr. Iqbal Kuttipuram, is a long-time resident of the United Arab Emirates.
The film deals with the problems faced by expatriates and their fight for justice. The labor camps in the UAE are set as the backdrop of the movie. It shows the pros and cons of labor in the Gulf. Sreenivasan (Cuba Mukundan) is characterized as a leftist who has a mind and the courage to raise his voice for the immigrants.
The film, which was shot in the UAE, also shows the invasion of capitalism and the loss of relevance of communist theories in our daily life. It gives some flashes into the change of social life in communist nations like China, Russia etc.
Cuba Mukundan loves China and Cuba — preferably Cuba and supports Fidel Castro, hence his handle “Cuba” Mukundan. But he lives in Dubai and the petrodollar dream. But then Kerala is no Cuba nor the modern day capitalist-communist China which Mukundan and his class can mold into their way of thinking.
The movie, a satirical mirror to the murky status that communism holds in Kerala, starts with illustrating Mukundan’s social life in his village. He lives only for the party and follows the ethics of communism. But as a result of some undercurrents in his own party, Mukundan encounters a financial crisis and has to go to Dubai for a job that would help solve his crisis. He faces many challenges during his stay and fate changes his life completely. Actress Samvritha Sunil plays the role of a nurse working in Dubai. The beauty quotient is provided by actress Chang Su Min, a Chinese expatriate who works in Dubai.
Mukundan meets with the Chinese women Su Min and later he helps her when she is in distress only because she is from China. The cast also includes Jagathi Sreekumar, Jayasurya and Salim Kumar. Director Lal Jose said that the film would screen across the Gulf during this week.
