Govindan Aravindan (23 January 1935 – 15 March 1991) was an Indian film director, screenwriter, musician, cartoonist, and painter.

[2] He was known for his unorthodox way of filmmaking; he changed his cinematic forms consistently[3] and experimented in storytelling without regular narrative styles.

He became associated with eminent theatre figure Kavalam Narayana Panicker which accelerated his activities in the field of professional play.

[7] Aravindan was working as an officer in the Rubber Board when he got associated with artist Devan, playwright Thikkodiyan and writer Pattathuvila Karunakaran.

The film, which exposes opportunism and hypocrisy set against the backdrop of the Independence struggle, was inspired by Aravindan's own cartoon series Cheriya Lokavum Valiya Manushyarum (Small World and Big People).

Ravi reflects on the past struggles of the anti-British freedom fighters he has learned about from his paralyzed father.

[10] Aravindan's second film Kanchana Sita (1972) was an adaptation of C. N. Sreekantan Nair's play of the same name, which is a reworking of Valmiki's Ramayana.

[7] It interprets a story from the Uttara Kanda of the epic poem, where Rama sends his wife, Sita, to the jungle to satisfy his subjects.

The film, told in a feminist perspective, significantly differs from all other adaptations of Ramayana in the characterisation of the central characters, including Rama and Lakshmana.

Kummatty is a Pied Piper-like figment of Malabar's folklore about a partly mythic and partly real magician called Kummatty (bogeyman) while Esthappan blends together the Biblical story of the deeds of Christ and the way society responded to him, with the life of Esthappan, whose life mystified others.

Unlike earlier films directed by Aravindan, Chidambaram featured a cast consisting of many popular actors: Bharath Gopi, Smita Patil, Sreenivasan and Mohandas play the lead roles.

In 1986 Oridathu can be seen as a continuation of Aravindan's earlier film Thampu and his cartoon series Cheriya Manushyarum Valiya Lokavum (The Small Man and the Big World).

The film is different from many of Aravindan's earlier works in that it deals with a broad range of characters and lacks a clear-cut linear story.

Aravindan's 1989 feature film Unni was an international co-production loosely based on experiences in Kerala of a group of American students, who played themselves.