Spadikam

Spadikam
Theatrical release poster
Directed byBhadran
Written by
  • Bhadran (Story & Screenplay)
  • Rajendra Babu (Dialogues)
Produced byR. Mohan
StarringMohanlal
Thilakan
Cinematography
Edited byM. S. Mani
Music byS. P. Venkatesh
Production
company
Distributed byManorajyam Release
Release date
  • 30 March 1995 (1995-03-30) (India)
Running time
158 minutes[1]
CountryIndia
LanguageMalayalam
Budget₹1.70 crore[2]
Box office₹12.85 crores[2]
(including re-release)[3]

Spadikam (transl. Crystal) is a 1995 Indian Malayalam-language action drama film directed and co-written by Bhadran and produced by R. Mohan through Shogun Films. Starring Mohanlal and Thilakan, the film revolves around Thomas Chacko alias Aadu Thoma, a ruffian estranged from his toxic father C.P. Chacko alias Kaduva Chacko, upon failing to meet the latter's high expectations.

Development of the script took Bhadran three years to complete. It was based on three real-life ruffians who lived around Pala. The dialogues were written by Rajendra Babu. S. P. Venkatesh composed Spadikam's soundtrack and background score and J. Williams and S. Kumar were the cinematographers. Valsan and M. S. Mani were the film's art director and editor, respectively. The film was extensively shot in and around the town of Changanassery in Kottayam district, and was completed in 45 working days. Except for three days of shooting in Madras (now Chennai), Spadikam was filmed in Kerala.

Produced on a budget of ₹75 lakh, Spadikam was released on 30 March 1995 to critical acclaim, primarily for the performances of the lead cast, dialogues and cinematography. It was commercially successful and went on to become one of the highest-grossing films of the year; Spadikam completed a 100-day run in several centers. In addition to the Filmfare Award for Best Film – Malayalam, Spadikam won the Best Director and Best Actor at the 43rd Filmfare Awards South. Mohanlal also won the Kerala State Film Award Best Actor at the 27th Kerala State Film Awards. The film was dubbed and released in Tamil as Yuddham in 1996.[4] It was remade in Telugu as Vajram, Tamil as Veerappu and in Kannada as Mr. Theertha.

Spadikam, which attained cult status, is considered instrumental in introducing thug life glorification of Mollywood superstars on screen. The film is also considered a milestone in the career of Mohanlal. The film along with Devaasuram (1993) indirectly marked the beginning of a new image of Mohanlal, that of an action hero that would appeal to the masses. The character of Aadu Thoma has over the years become a pop culture icon. In March 2020, during the 25th anniversary of the film, the plan to digitally enhance and a re-release it in theatres was announced. A digitally remastered 4K Dolby Atmos version of Spadikam was released theatrically on 9 February 2023.[5]

  1. ^ "Spadikam". British Board of Film Classification. Archived from the original on 18 August 2023. Retrieved 8 February 2023.
  2. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference report was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference report2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Ramanujam, D. S. (16 February 1996). "Cinema: Meendum Savithri/Mahaprabhu/Amman Koil Vasalilae/Yuddham". The Hindu. p. 27. Archived from the original on 21 December 1996. Retrieved 12 July 2023.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference :2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).