G Prabha’s second film in Sanskrit, ‘Taya’, focusses on the landmark trial of Thatri

‘Taya’ is about how Thatri took on the patriarchy and the judiciary

Kuriyedathu Savitri, aka. Thatri, a young Namboodiri woman who lived in the early part of the 20th century, is a name that resonates with modern Kerala. The life of Thatri, wife of the elderly Raman Namboodiri of Kuriyedath Mana in Thrissur, who questioned the judiciary and patriarchy of her time, had far-reaching consequences that are relevant even today. That is why G Prabha decided to make his second feature film, Taya (By Her), in Sanskrit on Thatri, and the series of events that have immortalised her name. Taya, shot over 22 days in Kerala during February-March 2021, focusses on the Smarthavicharam, a kind of inquisition that examined the moral conduct of women from the Namboodiri community. The last trial of its kind ordered by the king of erstwhile Kochi, the Smarthavicharam of Thatri in 1905 looked into allegations of adultery against her.