The Invisible Other: Caste in Tamil Cinema 

We failed to celebrate SP Jananathan when he was living 😢 He was the true revolutionary even before Pa Ranjith came into existence

Watching this in 2023.....thank u creators for making this

After seeing this video , I feel the importance of Ranjith ,,,,, hats off man

Am i the only one who didn't search for this video ....but.loved it

RU-vid recommended this video only yesterday... thank you RU-vid.

Title for the documentary can be : Tamil Cinema before Pa Ranjith.

So many intellectuals contributed to this documentary. Thank you so much for this work. Even the American college students showed that they are no less than their professors. They have a very sensible approach towards tamil cinema.

this is a deep level of discourse and social commentary. Brilliant!! Not relevant to just the tamil context, but so many relevant themes to power structures everywhere. Again, brilliant.

The whole documentary video makes me to feel the presence of Pa.Ranjith.

don't know why youtube recommended this video to be precise after the release of maamannan however, it is noteworthy to say that worth enough to watch

From here in 2014 to Maamannan 2023.. Tamil Cinema had a long journey in 8 years. Kudos to people like Ranjith, Mari Selvaraj, Udhayanidhi, etc.,

Outstanding production. Government should show this film free of charge to all people. Mr. Ranjit deserves some respect, credit and highly recognised awards.

Wonderful documentary! The manner in which the politics of caste and cinema are intertwined was brought out effectively with succinct examples. The interviews, especially with the director of Peranmai, Jananathan shed light on the complex issues with great candour. The focus group discussion with the youth sitting on a sandy elevation also has so much insight. The one hour spent watching this documentary was very productive and enriching for me.

Watching this after 9 years but still the video is worth!! And I am from Madurai, I can relate all those things that spoken here

Pa Ranjith is the gem in Tamil cinemas directorial venture were certain communities cherish and proudly take pride in his film and which boosts their morale of the community...what Nasser said abt who is the director??the ans is Pa Ranjith..and what thirumavalan feared for the product will not be acceptable by public will be toppled over hereafter by our revolutionary talented director who proudly asserts his identity other those great persons who are not openly willing to do it..

தமிழ் சினிமாக்களில் இன்றுவரை சாதி குறித்த மாற்றுப் பார்வையை, சிந்தனையை முன்வைக்கும் அருமையான காணொளி. மதுரை,வாடிப்பட்டி அரசுப் பள்ளியில் படித்த என் மாணவர்கள் பேசியதைப் பார்த்தது பெரு மகிழ்வும் பெருமையும்.. 🦋🦋

What Mari Selvaraj tried to say in Maamannan Audio launch 😢

Thank you for making this video, now this will be a answer for people who is speaking against mari selvaraj and pa ranjit

Well documented. Didn't know it's an 8yrs old video. Still relevant.

My respect for Mr Ranjith has grown so much… but the question remains. When will people respect another fellow human being as his or her equal ….

Good Documentary. Spread awareness. But for annihilating castes, we need to read Babasaheb Ambedkar.

So, it took one Mari Selvaraj, his view and movies for youtube to suggest this documentary to reach people after 8 years. it is proof enough that we still have caste discrimination active in our society. First people need to accept its presence.. and then only it will go away.. Chumma jathi illa illa solli oora ematha koodadhu...

பெருவாரியான நகரங்களில் உள்ள மக்களுக்கு ஜாதி அழிந்துவிட்டதாகவே தோன்றுகிறது. கிராமப் புறங்களுக்குச் சென்று பார்க்கும் பொழுது தான் ஜாதி தலை விரித்து ஆடுவதைக் காண்கிறோம். தமிழ் திரையுலகில், இத்துணை அளவிற்கு, (இலை மறை காயாகக் கூட) ஜாதி பிரதிணித்துவம் செய்யப்படுவது பிரமிப்பூட்டுகிறது. வாழ்த்துக்கள்! There was never a dull moment in the whole documentary. I would say you have almost accomplished what you set out to do, in terms of getting the message out. Cheers!

Pariyerum Perumal is the Answer for all this questions...❤️

VetriMaran, Pa. Ranjith, Mari Selvaraj 💙

Born& Borought up in the very cast of thevar but now married non thevar. Ashamed of casts in India.

What a video. That too when YT wasnt mainstream in India 💪. Cinema is changing, people aren't sadly.

Amazing how Pa.Ranjith, Maari Selvaraj, Vetrimaaran changed the cinematic narrative...

Hats off to Pa.Ranjith and Mari Selvaraj

ranjith is the only ray of hope

இப்போது பா.ரஞ்சித் & மாரிசெல்வராஜ் தமிழ் சினிமா போக்கையே மாற்றி அமைத்திருக்கிறார்கள் (2023)

Lyndon Johnson, US President (1963-69): If you can convince the lowest white man he's better than the best colored man, he won't notice you're picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he'll empty his pockets for you. Prof Lakshmanan's Graded Inequality reminded me of this.

I thought caste system is obsolete in TN.. but after knowing the village side through my friends.. i really feel lucky to be born in city as this city makes me to know about WORLD rather CASTE system.. from here i knew anhiliation of caste is a must for future generation, it will end up reservation based on caste as well as discrimination based on caste.

Thank you RU-vid for suggesting this video after 8 years ❤

i dont know why youtube recommended very lately......atkeast i saw it now

I was attracted to the Tamil Spoken by the people in this video. Pure Tamil unlike other big cities in Tamil Nadu. Madurai is exemplary!

Thanks to Mari Selvaraj. After Maamannan people are watching this video.

Thanks .one of the best documentaries in Tamil .pls retake this again.

Watching this in 2019...now realizing how Pa.Ranjith has been a game changer...there was a situation where a director can't narrate something with a dalit character as a lead one...but he made consequtive movies like that

This Video Can be titled as Tamil Cinema Before the Arrival of Pa.Ranjith 💙 If this Documentary was Made today again.. I'll be Incomplete Without giving Credits to Ranjith.. The Blue Panther.. 💙🔥 You mean The World to me Thalaiva 🔥

I enjoyed how academicians are aware of everything and watching from outside 😂. Great work

+ET Docs This is brilliant work, conceptually and technically. You've brought out the caste dynamics in Tamil cinema very well. As an NRT (non-resident Tamilian), I find the references to various films and filmmakers working on caste from Dalit PoVs very useful. Thank you.

One of the best documentary I have seen ❤🎉.

Seeing how tamil actors hide behind a caste, hats off to rajini for giving ranjith two movies which put him in the top tier map of tamil cinema. Probably the guilt from enjaman.

One of the finest documentary about caste in tamil cinema. No one is ready to take or accept a movie which shows dalit as equal to other caste. Caste ism in cinema which creates a imbalance in the society, diverse among the students and ignites the violent, superior and arrogant thoughts among the OBC people. Diversity will automatically diminish if cinema directors concentrate on common issue among the people rather than caste based stories.

Pa.Ranjith, mari Selvaraj pera sonna yen ivanungaluku Eriyuthu ipodha theriyuthu

Who all need a 2025 Look back with the same people. ?????? If it is possible please make it happen.!!!

I am from Kerala. Most of the 80's and 90's movies are casteist movies. After watching this I realised Tamil movies were also the same. Thanks to Pa Renjith. My favourite Tamil movie is Pariyerum perumal.

Superb Documentary !!!! I feel Pa.Ranjith filled half of this empty space. Lots to come

After 8 years seeing this documentary again

Can we all agree that Ranjith is our Spike Lee of Indian cinema ?

I am bihari dalit and pa rajits works should be done in bollywood also

இந்த படத்துல தலித் மக்களுக்கு முன்னேற எந்த எந்த வழியில் எந்த எந்த இடத்தில இடையூறுகள் இருக்குது என்பதை படமாக எடுத்து விளக்கிய ஐயாவுக்கு நன்றி👌👌👌👌👏👏👏👏👏👏👌👍👍🙏🙏🙏

super well explained documentary, now ranjith changing that.

உழைக்கும் இனமே உலகை ஜெயித்திடும் ஒரு நாள் விழித்து இருந்தால் விரைவில் வருமே அந்த திருநாள்

Vetrimaaran sir, Pa Rajith Anna, Mari Selvaraj Anna💙💙💙

I don't know about cast much But after PA.RANJITH came to industry Some changes r happening? 🤔

Pa Ranjith has revelutionalised tamil cinema. Wow.. we have come a long way. Hope there is more anti-caste and dalit movies made in tamil.

In madurai even patients go to same caste doctor

Nice Idea and documentary. Please extend this to a 2nd part now in 2018. With Ranjith in place as a prominent director in TC, this could be an interesting documentary now.

Great work team.. Highly appreciate that.. it shows we need to go a long way... Discussion required.. First of all we need to accept the caste issues and then start speaking about it.. Hope we will come across soon..

Great documentary. Found it randomly. Lucky me. Hats off, Suresh ET.

Best video i ever seen. Thanks to the complete crew.

After watching 'Thevar Magan', I began to read reviews to see whether and how people have analysed the caste portrayals in the film. The common charge, as far as I know, is that the film glorifies Thevar caste violence (and has been responsible for spawning a kind of cinema that does more of the same). While I agree with the latter bit, my reading of the film itself differs slightly. To me, the protagonist appears as a typical modern, urban sort who goes from being an escapist to a reformist saviour. His education and lifestyle have imbued him with liberal values (reflected in the way he approaches the poor and the women in his life), and made feudal violence an anachronistic anathema to him. The film has, as a running theme, repeated calls for the rejection of such violence, and I was glad to see the protagonist turn himself in to the police in the end, instead of giving us some kind of feudal resolution with notions of honour and valour prevailing over the law. That's about the whole extent of the film's progressiveness though. The violence in the film is portrayed as clan violence, much more than caste violence, primarily directed against other members of the same dominant caste; the (unnamed) Dalits are incidental victims who just happen to be swept along in the process. This is a clever obfuscation of how, in reality, such violence is expressly employed to sustain caste power and authority over the Dalits. The protagonist is moved by a sense of noblesse oblige, but he never confronts the source of his privilege. There is no realisation that he owes his status to the same feudal violence that he now wants to eliminate, much less a questioning of that status. The solution, as far as the film is concerned, is not a struggle by the poor and the Dalits themselves to dismantle caste hierarchy and economic disparity, but a patronising paternalism that serves to further entrench the hierarchy. This for me was the most disturbing and damaging aspect of the film.

Very well made documentary!! Thanks :)

wonderful documentary !! Caste based films are twice in Telugu film industry as much when compare to Tamil film Industry

A dedicative work. An important documentary, need of this age. Well done Crew!

53:29 idha avar solrappo ranjith dhan nyabagam vararu ..truth is ranjith made it happen !!!

Great documentary... please try adding subtitles so that it gets a wider reach

Good film. It's almost impossible to eradicate the caste system in Indian / Tamil society. If we treat Dalit people as an equal human being, That will be more than enough. I notice, the intensity of discrimination is bit relaxed(?) these days compared to earlier periods, but still a long way to go. Expecting more documentary films like this. Thanks to the Flim Director - Suresh.

எட்டு வருடங்கள் முன் வந்த பதிவு... இப்போது தான் பார்க்க முடிந்தது...🙏 #Maamannan effect?

All are Same (எல்லோரும் சமம் ) , now a days There is No High Class People's and No Low Class People's யராகவது Accident ஆகி ( உயிர் க்கு போராடுறப்போ Caste பார்த்த டா Operation க்குBlood வாங்குறோம்.... அப்போ பாருங்க Caste ah .. மனிதனை மனிதனாக மதிக்க காணும்... அப்புறம் தான் எல்லாம் ... திறமை உள்ளவர்கள் எந்த சாதி யாக இருந்தாலும் முன்னேற்றம் அடையட்டும்.......... வாழ்த்துக்கள்.......... தமிழ் வாழ்க

Erudite, clear, cutting. Incredible work.

Great work...watching it after 8 yrs..

After Pa.Ranjith , good things are happening ..it's just beginning

This one hour documentary has compensated all the times ive wasted watching shitty tamil movies. Thank you Suresh ET. This is a wonderful documentary, well put and edited.

One of the best documentary 👌

Thank you for this enriching documentary. I recognised my privilege multiple times when i watched this.

Very good documentary ...this should be released all over tamilnadu .

After seeing this video, Ranjith Anna is great .

Thank you Ranjith Anna 💙👑🙏

I'm not Dalit but Pa.Ranjith fan💕

Devarmagan jaathi padam thaan 💯

This video states the importance of Pa.Ranjith and Mari Selvaraj..

hats of you guys!!!!! innaikuthan itha pathilem kelvipadren!!! romba shocka irukku!!!!

This documentary is exactly before Kabali. Kabali changed and answered all their questions . Thanks to Pa Ranjith ❤️

48:25 caste is the only path to success in Tamil film industry. Pathetic & Sad is not using last names but using it in every step of life in TN.

SEMMA!!! Great work to the team to document such a topic...hats off...expecting more documentation of caste in popular media,not only in films but also in journalism

அருமையான பதிவு நிறைய தமிழ் சினிமாவின் சாதிய குறியீடுகள் சொல்லபடவில்லை ஆனால் சொன்ன வரை சரியாக சொல்லி உள்ளீர்கள் நன்றி!

Excellent work. Let your good work continue.

This a perfect documentation

Tamilnadu has only 3 forward caste who don’t have reservation. Only three. Brahmins, Chettiyars and saiva velllalars (Mudaliyars). All other caste enjoy reservations of some form.

Muthaiyya making caste films Pa.Ranjith making social films 😊

24:12 Rip Sp jananathan sir😧

But pallar caste wont accept them as Dhalit... The best example is that community conveying dont say dhalit...Because ..Thevar ,konar ,goundar lam avangala specfic caste thaan soluranga avanga Bc nu soluradhu illa. But pallar paraiyar sakiliyar and other 120 caste others are simply telling those name as dhalit.. or Sc...this is totally mad right

The answer is Kabali 53:00

Amazing. Precious video. Many many thanks for this awareness

Nalla padaipu reach aagum late aanalum...this video is another proof

Game changer Pa.Ranjith 👑🙏🐯🐅

I hope same kind of work will spread through out the country nd we get more awareness among people