Thampu (തമ്പു്) 46 years old

Thampu

Across a dirt road, the circus truck comes to a village. The tent goes up. Schoolboys run to the tent. Village women come and watch an acrobat roll a hoop across a tightrope. A lion leaps from the edge of one stool - across darkness - on to another stool. A gap-toothed old woman gazes at a goat on a tight rope; her eyes are wide with curiosity. For three days the circus makes small ripples in the life of this village. Municipal permits are required. At a toddy shop, a soldier befriends the circus strongman; a pump attendant sits on a rock each day watching a village girl bathe and dry her hair. The dwarf brings back to the circus a watermelon larger than his head. In the film's three days, we, the viewers, learn the geography of the village: the banyan treewith leaves like transparent film, the shining water, the light on the sand at sunset. When the circus leaves the village, it leaves us. The narrative says: The circus comes and leaves; life goes on.

Credits

Thampu Cast

Name Character
Nedumudi Venu He was 29, now 76 years old
Gopi He was 40, 70 years old when he died as Circus Manager

Thampu Crew

Name Department
Thampu poster
Thampu (46 years)

  • Release day: Wednesday, January 18, 1978
  • Runtime: 129 minutes