Munshi is an Indian Malayalam-language political and social satire television programme on the Malayalam-language news channel Asianet News. The show is directed by Anil Banerjee; it has aired continuously since September 2000. Earlier it was aired on Asianet.
Although the original idea during the show's inception was "giving a visualised treatment to pocket cartoons", after about 300 episodes, it "deviate[d] to the path of politics".
Characters
Characters are sketched such that they come from a widely different backgrounds, with different political and religious outlooks. It sets a secular atmosphere in the show.
Munshi - the khadi-clad central character
School student - seen with a Pazhampori in his hand
Kariyachan - seen with neck brace
Panicker - always wearing formals
Motta - carrying a rooster in his hands
Hajiyar - carries an umbrella
Thirumeni - a Hindu priest
Sakhavu - a comrade who addresses everyone else as 'Sakhavu'
President
Format
Each episode takes up a social or political topic that is part of the current affairs. The characters, who belong to different socio-political backgrounds, narrates their opinion on the issue. The three-to-five minute strip ends with Munshi stating his view on the topic, often with a quirky proverb or pithy quote. The Munshi never takes part in others' discussion, his sole role is in delivering the final comment. The show begins and ends with a rooster's cock-a-doodle-do sound.
Cast and crew
Munshi was initially played by KP Sivasankara Kurup for the first 10 years of the show. He was replaced by Achuthath Vasudevan Krishnan Moosad. School student - Shreeju Nedumangad Kariyachan - Ayyappan Panicker - Sreekumar Hajiyar - Rajendran Sakhavu - Madhu Elavattom Motta - Hari Cameraman - Ajai Kumar G R