Writer-director Shalini Ushadevi was honoured with the Special Jury Award for women/transgender filmmakers for Ennennum at the recently announced 54th Kerala State Film Awards. In addition to directing, Shalini also served as the writer, producer, and production designer of this dystopian science fiction film.
"I am very grateful for this award, which will hopefully open more doors and enable me to tell the stories I want to tell and reach a wider audience," says Shalini on her win. Reflecting on the segregation that exists in awards, the filmmaker thoughtfully adds, "Ultimately, I hope it will lead the way to a future when there will be no need for a separate category of awards for women and transgender filmmakers."
Shalini dedicates this accolade to her "incredible cast and crew, who have been extremely supportive and brilliant." She is also pleased that Arun Chandu's Gaganachari, too, received recognition at the State Awards. "It is a significant moment for science fiction and signals a change in the industry."
Ennennum had its world premiere at the 28th edition of the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) in December 2023 as part of the Malayalam Cinema Today section. The film follows a married couple, set in an alternate dystopian present, as they contemplate whether to achieve immortality by getting an expensive new implant. It features Santhy Balachandran and Anoop Mohandas as the lead couple. Earlier, Ennennum won the International Critics Award at the Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival (NIFFF) in Switzerland this year.
Shalini, who debuted with the Fahadh Faasil-starrer Akam (2012), won a National Award for co-writing the Tamil film Soorarai Pottru (2020). She also served as the writer for Netflix's true-crime documentary Curry & Cyanide: The Jolly Joseph Case (2023), helmed by Ullozhukku director Christo Tomy.
