New Delhi: Nana Patekar’s The Confession of Mary is set to premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. The film is based on the 1966 murder of a Catholic woman named Mariyakutty, in which the accused priest was sentenced to death. However, he was later acquitted.
The film is directed by National Award-winning filmmaker Ananth Narayan Mahadevan. Along with Patekar, the film stars Adil Hussain, Ashish Vidyarthi, Gautam Rode, Joy Sengupta, Neha Mahajan, Pankhuri Awasthy and Meenacshi Martins.
In the summer of 1966, the body of Mariyakutty, a 43-year-old widow and mother of five, was found near a water stream in Madatharuvi, Kerala. Father Benedict was accused of killing the woman, with the prosecution alleging that the motive was to end their affair. The priest was initially sentenced to death by a sessions court, but the following year, the Kerala High Court acquitted him on technical grounds, as there was no sufficient circumstantial evidence to establish his guilt.
Also read: Asrani’s final bow. Late veteran actor’s last film is Haiwaan
Murder of Mariyakutty
Earlier, two films were made in the Malayalam language based on the case. Mynatharuvi Kolakase, released in 1967, was directed by Kunchacko and starred Sathyan, Sheela and Adoor Bhasi. Another film, Madatharuvi, was released in the same year and directed by P.A. Thomas. The film starred Sukumari, Thikkurissy Sukumaran Nair and Mustafa.
Before this, Patekar’s last film screened at TIFF was Salaam Bombay! (1988), directed by Mira Nair, in which he played Baba, a drug dealer. His most recent theatrical release was O’Romeo, directed by Vishal Bhardwaj, but the film flopped, collecting nearly Rs 92 crore against a reported budget of Rs 120 crore.
During this period, he was also doing several films and series in Marathi cinema, including Ole Aale (2024). Directed by Vipul Mehta, the Marathi film revolves around a father-son duo who set out on a journey that becomes an emotional voyage, as they encounter unexpected revelations that test and deepen their relationship.
(Edited by Ratan Priya)