A parody religion or mock religion is a belief system that challenges the spiritual convictions of others, often through humor, satire, or burlesque. Often constructed to achieve a specific purpose related to another belief system, a parody religion can be a parody of several religions, sects, gurus, cults, or new religious movements at the same time, or even a parody of no particular religion – instead parodying the concept of religious belief itself. Some parody religions emphasise having fun; the new faith may serve as a convenient excuse for pleasant social interaction among the like-minded.
Palappurathu Keshavan Surendranatha Thilakan was an Indian film and stage actor who appeared in over 200 Malayalam films. Thilakan was known for his elaborate method acting, realistic and spontaneous appearances and is considered to be one of the greatest actors in Indian Cinema.
Kavya Madhavan is an Indian actress, who appeared predominantly in Malayalam films. She made her debut in 1991 as a child artist in Pookkalam Varavayi. Her debut role as one of the lead actresses was in Lal Jose's Chandranudikkunna Dikkil in 1999, when she was in the ninth grade. Its success established her status as one of the leading actress in the Malayalam industry during the 2000s. She has acted in over 75 movies. She has won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress twice, for her performances in Perumazhakkalam (2004) and Khaddama (2010).
The Sabarimala Sree Dharma Sastha Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to the god Ayyappan, who is also known as Dharma Shasta and is the son of the deities Shiva and Mohini.
Karthika Menon, better known by her stage name Bhavana, is an Indian actress who predominantly appears in Malayalam films, in addition to Kannada and Tamil films.
Manju Warrier is an Indian actress, who works predominantly in Malayalam cinema. She is the recipient of a National Film Award, a Kerala State Film Award and seven Filmfare Awards South.
Religious satire is a form of satire that refers to religious beliefs and can take the form of texts, plays, films, and parody. From the earliest times, at least since the plays of Aristophanes, religion has been one of the three primary topics of literary satire, along with politics and sex. Satire which targets the clergy is a type of political satire, while religious satire is that which targets religious beliefs. Religious satire is also sometimes called philosophical satire, and is thought to be the result of agnosticism or atheism. Notable works of religious satire surfaced during the Renaissance, with works by Geoffrey Chaucer, Erasmus and Albrecht Dürer.
Sunil Kumar, known by his stage name Narain, is an Indian actor, who has starred in Malayalam, Tamil and Telugu films. He made his debut in Adoor Gopalakrishnan's Nizhalkuthu (2002), followed by performances in Malayalam films 4 the People (2004), Achuvinte Amma (2005), and Classmates (2006). Narain's Tamil and Telugu debuts were in Mysskin's Chithiram Pesuthadi (2006) and Jayaraj's Yuvasena (2004).
Balamangalam was a Malayalam comic magazine published from 1980 to 2012. It was also published in Kannada under the title Balamangala.
Salim Kumar is an Indian actor, comedian, director and writer in Malayalam cinema. Mostly known for his comic and comedy roles, Salim Kumar is considered one of the best and most prominent comedians in the history of Malayalam cinema.
Siddique Mamathu (born 1 October 1962), known mononymously as Siddique, is an Indian actor and producer, who works mainly in Malayalam cinema. Along with appearing in over 350 Malayalam films, he has also acted in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi language films. He is known for having played a wide range of starring and supporting roles, including comic characters, romantic leads, anti-heroes and villains.
Gopalakrishnan Padmanabhan, better known by his stage name Dileep, is an Indian actor, producer, comedian and entrepreneur who predominantly works in the Malayalam film industry. He has also acted in Tamil, Hindi, and Kannada films. He has won several awards, including Kerala State Film Awards and one Filmfare Awards South.
Atheism and agnosticism have a long history in India and flourish within the Śramaṇa movement. Indian religions like Jainism, Hinduism and Buddhism consider atheism to be acceptable. Doubt has been ingrained even in Indian spiritual culture.
Ee Parakkum Thalika is a 2001 Indian Malayalam-language slapstick comedy drama film starring Dileep, Harisree Ashokan, Nithya Das, and Cochin Haneefa. It was directed by Thaha and written by V. R. Gopalakrishnan. The film also marked the debut of Nithya Das. The story follows bus owner Unnikrishnan and his assistant, Sundareshan, who live and sleep in their bus. It is considered one of the best slapstick comedy movies in Malayalam cinema and was one of the highest-grossing Malayalam movies in 2001. The bus known as Thamarakshan Pilla, which is a central figure in the movie, eventually developed into a cult figure in Kerala.
Mohiyuddin Nadukkandiyil Karassery, commonly known as M. N. Karassery, is an Indian writer and critic of Malayalam language. He is known for his writing and lectures on politics, literature, art and culture, and is a recipient of K.M. Seethi Sahib Memorial Human Fraternity Award and holds the distinguished chair in Malayalam studies at University of Calicut.
Annayum Rasoolum is a 2013 Indian Malayalam-language romantic drama film directed by Rajeev Ravi and written by Santhosh Echikkanam from a story by Ravi. Set in Vypin islands in Kerala, the plot revolves around a star-crossed romance between Rasool, a Muslim taxi driver, and Anna, a Latin Christian salesgirl, both from conservative working class families. The songs and background score were composed by K.
Jeethu Joseph is an Indian film director, screenwriter, and producer who predominantly works in Malayalam cinema. He has also worked in a few Tamil, Hindi and Telugu films. Jeethu made his directional debut with the 2007 police procedural, Detective. He is best known for creating the Drishyam franchise. Drishyam became the highest-grossing Malayalam film ever, at its time of release. It was the first Malayalam film to cross the ₹50 crore mark, at the box office. Drishyam 2 was released directly through Amazon Prime Video, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Like the prequel, it was highly acclaimed and appreciated, worldwide.
Tovino Thomas is an Indian actor and film producer who predominantly works in Malayalam films. He made his debut in 2012 with the film Prabhuvinte Makkal. His breakthrough roles were in the films ABCD (2013), 7th Day (2014), and Ennu Ninte Moideen (2015). He starred in the titular character as the Netflix superhero film Minnal Murali (2021).
Dinkoism, the Dinkoist religion, or Dinkamatham is a parody religion and social movement that emerged and evolved on social networks organized by independent welfare groups in the Indian state of Kerala. Adherents describe Dinkoism as a genuine religion.
Kithaab, also Kitab, is a Malayalam-language play featuring a humorous portrayal of a young girl who dreams of calling out the Azaan (vaang), the Islamic call to worship normally recited by a male muezzin or mukri. The girl questions the subjugation of women in her community, and rebels against community norms by dancing with her friends, stealing food denied to her, and demanding the opportunity to call the vaang.
