Govt, media and films drive Kerala's thriving occult market

When news of the horrific human sacrifice of women at Elanthoor in Pathanamthitta in Kerala began tumbling out, it sent shockwaves across the state of Kerala.

It also got people talking about the many obscurantist and superstitious practices prevalent across religions in the state that routinely tops literacy rankings. In fact, a glimpse of the classified sections of the very papers that reported the gruesome crime in gory detail on their front pages is revelatory. Soliciting unsuspecting people to ameliorate their spiritual, emotional and physical problems through black magic and witchcraft is commonplace.

While these advertisements were more recurrent in the days gone by, the advent of technology has ensured that there are other ways of propagating such hoaxes – even in the case in question, now referred to as the Elanthoor case, the prime accused used the cover of an anonymous Facebook profile to lure his victims. For a state known for its amity and tolerance, many unholy practices get routinely brushed under the carpet.

Along with organized religions, faith peddlers in religious garbs who are free agents have also set up shops in Kerala. Most of them thrive on the basis of the material and spiritual deliverance of their followers. The Fahadh Fazil film Trance (2019) sheds light on faith ministers of a particular kind but, in fact, it cuts across religions and denominations as spirituality has become a highly lucrative business proposition.

Also Read: Room No 13: Is Kerala HC suffering from triskaidekaphobia?

Based on testimonials and what can only be dubbed ‘magic shows’ accompanied by music and sound effects, pastors conduct ‘faith healing’ sessions routinely across Kerala. In the spirit of competitiveness and not to get outdone, even men of god belonging to organised Churches conduct parallel magic shows of their own, dubbed “retreats”. And in the true secular traditions of Kerala, various godmen and god women hailing from other religions co-exist amicably with their Christian counterparts.

Even the judiciary in Kerala is not immune to superstitious practices. For instance, in 1995 the old Kerala high court building did away with court number 13. When the new building came up, court number 13 became ‘12A’. When it was challenged, the petition was thrown out and imposed fine by the judges in the high court – only to be overturned by the Supreme Court. The lordships in the high court decided to name the courts according to floors, thereby finding a roundabout solution to their fear of number 13 – or Triskaidekaphobia.

The non-introduction of an anti-superstition bill by the Left government in Kerala, originally conceived in 2014 by the then UDF government, after the death of two girls in Kollam and Pathanamthitta districts, is also under the spotlight. The late PT Thomas of the Congress and KD Prasenan, hailing from the Communist Party of India (Marxist), had introduced private member’s bills – only to be rejected after the Left government promised to introduce the bill on its own.

Black magic and occult practices have always had a thriving market in Kerala. In fact, movies and cartoon strips have also gone on to promote it. Wayanadan Thampan (1978) with Kamal Haasan in the lead and Mohanlal’s Sreekrishnaparunthu (1984), incidentally both films directed by A Vincent, had themes glorifying black magic and devil worship. Five years ago, a shocking case of a man killing his family members had emerged, which was deemed to be based on occultism and Satan worship in the heart of Thiruvananthapuram, a stone’s throw from the chief minister’s residence.

The 1984 film My Dear Kuttichathan, touted to be India’s first 3D film, had as its central character a goblin called Kuttichathan, going on to capture the public imagination. No sooner had the film released than Balarama, the popular children’s weekly published by the Manorama group in Kerala, began publishing the comic strip Mayavi with characters ranging from the titular good imp versus villainous goblin titled Luttappi along with Dakini, the witch, and Kuttoosan, the wizard. It also popularized the chant, “Om khreem Kuttichathan” (used to summon the imp) among kids.

Also Read: Wealthy, highly educated Kerala is avid consumer of superstitions

Today, Thrissur district in Kerala has supposedly become a hub of sorcerers who indulge in devil worship broadly categorized as “Kuttuichathan Seva” centres. This is astonishing since Kerala has had a strong rationalist tradition going back more than a century ago. Sahodaran Ayyappan, social reformer and politician who was also a close associate of Sri Narayana Guru, had gone so far as to give Guru’s slogan “Oru Jati, Oru Matham, Oru Daivam Manushyanu” (One Caste, One Religion, One God for Human-beings) a twist to “Jati Venda, Matham Venda, Daivam Venda Manushyanu” (No Caste, No Religion, No God for Human-beings) – revolutionary in hindsight today.

While rationalists would argue that there is a thin line between faith and superstition, it is important to redefine that line and ensure that regressive and criminal activities in the name of faith are prevented. It would require not only a societal intervention but also the government to legislate an anti-superstition act at the earliest.