The sound of silence
Photo by Bob Clark from Pexels Silence is what I remember the most. Dark, deadened, absolute. A crinkled face, furrows of worry wrinkling up his forehead. I don't remember anything much. Just a darkened room and Janardhanan, his oily face gleaming, and deep, dark silence. This was Elipathayam , a Malayalam movie from the genre we used to call art movie as opposed to a regular movie filled with songs, dances, and lots of action. This movie from my childhood stands out in my mind for its silence. The silence crept along the walls, plunged into olive green watery depths, danced off the velvety moss on the ancient rocks that encircled the pond, and perched on his head, slithering all over, dragging him into an abyss that even he cannot begin to fathom. Janardhanan’s sullen face with spindles of a salt and pepper mustache stares into the silence, eyes blanked out, soul empty. Silence follows us everywhere but nowhere on celluloid has it been captured and displayed as splendidly as i
