Introduction

Cinema is a democratic art that fundamentally expresses real-life experiences regardless of any differences. It has an indispensable role in presenting the heritage, culture and ethnicity of the people. Known as Kollywood, the Tamil film industry focuses primarily on the livelihoods of the Tamils, their culture and their social and political life. Films provide a platform to disseminate, express and communicate culture-based themes, political ideas and social realities, which are essential for building a better life for the people. Activists, politicians and ideologues use film as a medium of propaganda to spread their thoughts and ideologies and establish diverse political cultures. Since the 1950s, Tamil cinema has been dynamic in promoting the Dravidian movement and its ideas, aiming to promote self-respect, social justice, self-esteem and dignity among the indigenous Tamils. Vetrimaaran, a Tamil filmmaker, claims that ‘Tamil cinema put forward the principles of Dravidian politics, and the new films lend strength to the ideals of Dravidian politics. Social realities and political circumstances provide themes to such movies’. S. Theodore Baskaran, a Tamil film historian and wildlife conservationist, asserts the history of Tamil cinema along the same lines when he states that ‘over the seventy-nine years of its existence, Tamil cinema has grown to become the most domineering influence in the cultural and political life in Tamil Nadu’.