Raising the Bar: Changing Portrayals of Alcohol in Tamil, Malayalam Films

A heartbroken man turns to alcohol for comfort, driving himself towards self-destruction. The image of this incurable romantic has been immortalised in Indian cinema, beginning with Bimal Roy’s Hindi film Devdas (1955), based on Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay’s Bengali novel of the same name. Nearly 70 years since then, the relationship between romance, rejection and alcohol has only grown stronger on the big screen — and it’s giving some cinephiles a headache. 

Soon after survival thriller Manjummel Boys became a hit — it is now the highest-grossing Malayalam film of all time at the Tamil Nadu box office, raking in over Rs. 50 crore — screenwriter and novelist Jeyamohan sparked controversy by slamming the film for “glorifying” alcoholism and hooligan behaviour. He extended his condemnation to all of Malayalam cinema, which he believes normalises and celebrates such a culture. Offended fans have, in turn, pointed out how plenty of Tamil films too have such scenes. 

Alcohol and heartbreak

Taking forward the tradition of Devdas, Tamil cinema has what is known as the “soup” song, which is all about celebrating the healing power of booze especially in the case of the distressed, wounded male hero. 

“Soup” songs typically have lyrics highlighting the beauty and callousness of the female love interest, and the pain of the bruised male heart. A few popular numbers of this genre include ‘Why this Kolaveri, di?’ from the romantic psychological thriller 3 (2012), ‘Kadhal En Kadhal’ from the psychological drama film Mayakkam Enna (2011), ‘Daavuya’ from the romcom Remo (2016) and so on. Incidentally, the ‘Chola Chola’ song from Ponniyin Selvan 1 (2022) – co-written by Jeyamohan – featuring Karikalan (Vikram) as a raging, raving drunk who is recounting his failed love story — could also be categorised as a “soup” song. 

Influenced by Tamil music, Malayalam films too have “theppu” songs, which are invariably about a woman who has led a man on and eventually cheats on him. ‘Scene Contra’ from the coming-of-age romance film Premam (2015) and ‘Thechille Penne’ from the romcom Role Models (2017) are two popular songs from this genre.

When Prabhu Ram Vyas was making his romance film Lover (2024), he was keen on interrogating this very archetype that’s been glorified over and over again. Lover is about the toxic relationship between Arun (Manikandan) and Divya (Sri Gouri Priya). Arun is possessive, insecure, and abusive towards Divya, but when she wants to break up with him, he refuses to let her go. He turns to alcohol when his rage and frustrations take over him, only worsening the problem. “I wanted the audience to see Arun’s flaws and also understand how his behaviour affects his partner,” said Vyas. “But I also wanted them to realise that all of us are capable of doing this. I didn’t want the audience to other him and set him aside as a toxic person.”

In Lover, Arun comes from a violent home. His father, an alcoholic, frequently ill-treats his mother and Arun hates him for it. It’s only towards the end that he realises his behaviour mirrors that of his father’s. “I do think cinema has strengthened the link between failed romance and alcohol. There was a phase when Tamil cinema had several bar songs, and staged some of the soup songs in such settings, too,” said Vyas. “Divya also drinks with her friends in Lover but she doesn’t let the habit affect her or those around her. As far as Arun is concerned, he sees it as an escape. It is when you’re afraid to face your fears and turn to alcohol that it becomes substance abuse. He is caught in a loop. There are people who are able to break generational trauma, but there are many others who don’t know how to do so and end up passing it on. Arun comes to this realisation in the film, and I wanted the audience also to be hopeful about breaking the cycle.”

From villain to hero

According to film historian and critic Theodore Baskaran, Mani Ratnam’s drama film Kannathil Muthamittal (2002), set in the backdrop of the civilian war in Sri Lanka, was among the earliest Tamil films to normalise drinking alcohol on screen. “There’s a scene when the characters played by Madhavan and Prakash Raj – the hero and his host – drink casually at home. It is not vilified or glorified. It is as if they’re just drinking tea or coffee, and there’s no stigma attached to it,” he said. 

Such a portrayal was probably reflective of globalisation that marked a cultural shift in Indian society in the Nineties. Political strategies towards alcohol have also influenced its representation in cinema. Total prohibition was introduced in Madras State under Chief Minister C Rajagopalachari in 1952. M Karunanidhi’s DMK government suspended it in 1971, allowing the sale of arrack and toddy, and in 1983, Chief Minister MG Ramachandran established the state-owned liquor distribution company, TASMAC. “In the Thirties and Forties, anti-alcohol messaging was very prevalent in Tamil cinema made on social subjects,” recalled Baskaran. “It was part of the Gandhian ideology and the Temperance Movement in India to curb alcohol consumption. Take the film Naam Iruvar (1947). Whenever a bad man appears, you’ll see him drinking.”

Naam Iruvar was about a young man who falls into bad company and indulges in vices. He eventually reforms and becomes a nationalist and a Gandhian. By the Fifties, anti-alcohol propaganda was waning but still, alcohol was primarily associated with the villain on screen. Films that came in later decades showed the hero drinking alcohol, but it wasn’t as normalised as it is now. It either happened in the context of a club scene, tragedy or some factor that justified the drinking. 

For example, in ‘Silar Kudipathupole’ from Sange Muzhangu (1972), MG Ramachandran is disguised as a Punjabi Sikh man who pretends to drink alcohol at a party while he’s investigating a case; Kamal Haasan in Sattam En Kaiyil (1978) plays twin brothers – one an educated, responsible person and the other who is his antithesis. To establish the difference, the latter is shown drinking alcohol and partying in ‘Sorgam Madhuvile’. In Salangai Oli (1983), Haasan plays a talented dancer who falls into depression and turns to alcohol for respite. Rajinikanth in Padikathavan (1985) is anti-alcohol in principle but gets drunk and sings the ‘Oora Therinjukitten’ song after he realises that his brother had been lying to him all along. Sivakumar in Sindhu Bhairavi (1985) is an acclaimed Carnatic singer who spirals into depression following an extramarital affair and takes to alcohol.  

In the Nineties and 2000s, drinking alcohol on screen became associated with fun or required no justification. In Padayappa (1999), for instance, Rajinikanth’s character, the hero and titular character, sings “Kikku Yerudhey” and dances with his family, including his teenage daughters and her friends, after accidentally drinking alcohol. By the time Lokesh Kanagaraj’s Master (2021) came around, even alcohol addiction didn’t need justification. In the film, Vijay plays JD, an alcoholic professor who comes up with different stories for his habit depending on who asks him. “I think alcohol has seeped into the lives of people after globalisation. Parents are also okay with social drinking in many homes in urban spaces. It has been normalised and cinema reflects this reality,” said Prabhu Ram Vyas. 

Compared to Tamil cinema, Malayalam films have had a more liberal view of alcohol though it was primarily associated with the villain or a hero with grey shades in earlier decades. Mohanlal’s “Namakku oru naranga vellam kaachiyallo (How about we get lemonade?)” dialogue from Thoovanathumbikal (1987), for instance, still has high recall value among fans and is used as a euphemism to invite someone for a drink. In the film, he plays a man who leads dual lives – one of fun and frolic with his friends in the city, and the other a life weighed down by responsibilities at his home in the village. Mohanlal has also played an alcohol addict in Ranjith’s Spirit (2012), a black comedy. 

In 2014, the Central Board of Film Certification’s (CBFC) made it mandatory to include anti-drinking disclaimers in scenes featuring alcohol. But that has hardly made a dent in how filmmakers portray drinking alcohol in cinema. “The good/bad dichotomy has changed drastically in Tamil as well as Malayalam films,” said film critic GP Ramachandran. “Nowadays, there are no ‘sarva guna sampannans’ among heroes in films.” Ramachandran noted that some Malayalam mainstream films may glorify alcoholism, but added that the portrayal isn’t unique to the industry. “It’s prevalent in Indian cinema as a whole. A prime example of this is the recent Hindi blockbuster Animal (2023), which grossed over Rs. 900 crores,” he pointed out.

The young men in Manjummel Boys drink and break rules, but the film doesn’t exactly glorify this behaviour. We are also witness to the responses of those around them – from the annoyed family at the wedding in the beginning of the film, to the driver who has to clean the vomit and mess left in the car in which they travel. The point of the film isn’t to celebrate the recklessness of the men. “Manjummel Boys is the story of camaraderie and solidarity among youths who are basically proletariat. They can’t be called hooligans. They engage in some immature actions and face trouble as a result,” said Ramachandran, strongly objecting to Jeyamohan’s comments about the film and Malayalam cinema in general. 

When women drink

Women drinking on screen is still not as common as men doing it, though there are more casual drinking scenes featuring women than there were a decade ago. Some films, like Pammal K Sambandham (2002), Villu (2009) and Thuppaki (2012) have also used the heroine drinking for comic effect. Generally, though, there is greater scrutiny when women drink on screen and don’t face any repercussions for it – for instance, Anita Udeep’s women-centric adult comedy 90ML (2019) was widely criticised for spoiling “Tamil culture”. There have also been songs like HipHop Tamizha Adhi’s ‘Club le Mabbu le’ that bemoan the “cultural destruction” caused by women drinking alcohol. Adhi apologised for the song later, but there’s no doubt that it reflected a hugely popular sentiment at the time of its release. 

In Malayalam, Girish AD’s recent blockbuster Premalu (2024) features women characters who drink together on the terrace, go to a pub and so on, and none of this is vilified. Another example is Nazriya in Ohm Shanthi Oshaana (2014) where she swirls wine in a glass before tasting it. 

But, even if such representations might be becoming more common, a woman who drinks alcohol tends to be judged – on screen and off it. Anand Ekarshi’s critically acclaimed Malayalam film Aattam (2024), which revolves around the sexual assault of a woman in a theatre group and the subsequent responses of her male colleagues, makes brilliant use of this gendered perception. While the group is initially supportive of her, the bro code slowly establishes itself and soon, it is Anjali who is subjected to an inquisition about her character and behaviour. Among the “negative” points made against her is that she drank with the men at the party where she was subsequently assaulted. 

Zarin Shihab, who plays the role of Anjali in the film, said that Ekarshi defined her character as a strong, independent woman who can handle herself. She is dating Vinay (Vinay Forrt), a married man who is also part of the group. She confides in him after the assault, but finds out that he’s no better than the other men in the group. “Her relationship with him is her major weakness. She is tied down by it. She overcomes this in her character arc,” said Shihab. 

There were many discussions about how to shoot the scenes, particularly the one where Anjali is thrown into a swimming pool at the venue of the party after everyone gets drunk. “We wondered if there should be a shot of the clothes sticking to her body, showing everyone’s gaze on her. But we decided not to spoon-feed the viewer. Many films make a spectacle of the abuse and we wanted to avoid that,” explained Shihab. 

The actor further said she was wondering how she was supposed to play a woman who has consumed alcohol. “Many films show women to be unstable, swaying from one side to another, accidentally touching a man and so on. She can’t handle herself and that becomes the focus of the scene,” she pointed out. But, Aattam does not infantilise Anjali. It turns the spotlight on the men who, on the surface, appear okay with her drinking but in their private discussions, it becomes an act that needs analysis. “No matter how familiar the setting, most men have thought about the bodies of women around them in a sexual way. Anjali has been with this group for several years…they’re like family to her. And yet, this is what happens,” said Shihab. “The shock is so much more intense for her because these men aren’t strangers. I liked the fact that the film explored this.” 

So, is the changing portrayal of alcohol on screen good, bad or ugly? The answer depends on whether you see the glass as half-empty or half-full.