Finally, one cannot discuss Kerala culture without the Pravasi (Non-Resident Keralite). The "Gulf Dream" built modern Kerala. Films like Pathemari (2015) starring Mammootty, or Virus (2019), show how the NRI dollar shapes the psyche of those who stay behind.

Kerala is a political laboratory where Communist governments are democratically elected every alternate term. Unsurprisingly, politics seeps into every frame of its cinema.