Cock Is the Culprit

In a small village in Kerala, people begin to feel threatened by an invisible rooster that crows at odd hours. It is heard interrupting the morning and night prayers at the temple, the mass at the church, the azaan at the mosque and the Martyrs' Day ceremony. When it hoots in the middle of the national anthem being sung at the local school, it is instantly labelled as a threat to national security.

It offends the sentiments of all those who are religious, political, patriarchal, exploitative, fanatical and homophobic. Naturally, there are many baying for its blood. The witch-hunt that ensues fuels suspicions that the invisible cock might even be a human, an anarchist who is trying to destabilize the nation with help from outside.

Incisive and hilarious by turns, The Cock Is the Culprit does an astute job of exposing the dark underbelly of Kerala society.

Unni R. (Author)
UNNI R. writes short stories and screenplays in Malayalam. He is the author of six collections of short stories. He is known for his distinct idiom and black humour, sparse style and incisive social criticism.
Unni has received numerous honours for his writing, including the prestigious Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for the short story collection Vaanku (Call for Prayer). A film based on the titular story in the collection received a special jury mention at the 68th National Film Awards, while a film adapted from the short story 'Ozhivudivasathe Kali' (Holiday Fun) won the 46th Kerala State Film Award for Best Film in 2015. Unni won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Screenplay for Charlie in the same year.