Beautifully sensitive Malayalam movie “Kudumbapuranam” (1988), directed by Sathyan Anthikad and starring Thilakan, Balachandra Menon, Sreenivasan among others.

Thilakan is leading a happily retired life with his three sons and a daughter in the same house. His eldest son Balachandra Menon is working as a clerk in a bank, second son Sreenivasan is trying his hand as a theatre artiste, third son is studying in college and daughter Parvathy.

Differences arise between the father and eldest son over some trivial matter, which snowballs into a major fight with ego clashes on both side. Son leaves his father’s house demanding compensation for the amounts he had spent on his sister’s wedding.

Both are headstrong and unwilling to budge from their respective positions. Meanwhile daughter Parvathy also returns to her maternal home because she is not able to adjust to her domineering mother in law Sukumari. Sreenivasan’s wife also has problems adjusting to her husband’s practically non existent career.

The woman are left holding their tears while the men fight it out. Lot of societal issues are handled here deftly with a strong script. Woman's space post marriage, responsibility of parents post their girl getting married, nit picking, taunting and sarcasm, idealism, very poor job market in Kerala, scanty employment opportunities — all very beautifully meshed into a fine movie, ably directed by Sathyan Anthikad.

Thilakan shines memorably with a role of a lifetime, but all the characters have played their parts marvelously. IMDB 7/10