thanks sarna, i thot u got angry!yeah, Rajamanikyam is in fact the highest grosser in malayalam cinema ever i believe...i don't have any issues with that film and we revisit it often on dvd...the problem is, the prajapathys and pokkirirajas are increasing just like after one superb Narasimham, so many Prajas and Onnamans increased!
in fact, yesterday me and a friend of mine were having a discussion on this same issue in a malayalam movie forum which we are members of, and telling that in tamil cinema there is equal space, respect, and BO recognition given for a Paiyya, a Naadodigal, a VTV, an Angadi Theru, a Vettaikkaran, etc...whereas in malayalam, good films don't make money at BO whereas substandard remakes/mass masala get undeserved recognition.
One cannot blame the makers alone for making such films again and again, coz afterall it's a business and like any, has to be successful...u can see all the gud recommended movies ajay n myself have given to Cinefan in this thread and yet, a majority of these were failures at the BO which doesn't encourage such endeavors in the future!
Cinefan, btw i forgot a notable movie...check out Passenger, a totally different movie whereas malayalam cinema is concerned...no songs, no heavy duty action, but a relevant theme of today's times...starring Dileep and Srinivasan...available on dvd...was released last year and won him many awards for the best newcomer prodigy in screenplay and direction...a thriller kind of a film that covers the happenings of 2 days in the lives of a couple of passengers who meet on a train...makes a lot of social comments about our society!