Kerala High Court invokes Mammooty's 1994 movie, says plight of cancer patients remains unchanged

The Kerala High Court today invoked Mammotty-starrer 'Sukrutham', a 1994 malayalam film written by MT Vasudevan Nair, to highlight how the burden of cancer treatment continues to push patients and their families into financial hardships [In Re Exorbitant Pricing of Life Saving Patented Medicines]

Justice Harisankar V Menon made the observation in an epilogue to a judgment concerning the exorbitant pricing of patented cancer medicine.

The film cited by the judge revolves around the character named Ravishankar, played by Mammootty, who is a journalist diagnosed with blood cancer.

The movie show his struggles with the prospect of death and the impact of his illness on those around him.

Justice Menon particularly referred to a scene in which Mammootty's character tells his doctor that he would not opt for treatment citing the crushing financial burden that cancer treatment places on patients and their families.

"He follows this with a heartbreaking monologue on how cancer patients and their bystanders end up pledging their entire lives to afford proper medical care, only to be left buried in mountains of debt," the judgment said.

Justice Menon observed that the situation portrayed in the film continues even today despite the enormous technological advances made since the movie released in 1994.

"It is highly distressing that despite the passage of more than three decades since this story was adapted into the movie vocabulary, and won accolades at the National and State levels, and despite the growth of technology, the plight of patients and their families remains the same," the Judge added.

Justice Menon also reflected on the role of art in drawing societies attention to the life and struggles of such patients and said that,

"The aim of art was, is, and always will be to bring the various realms of society closer and to make them more aware of the lives led by others. Yet, despite such heavy social cavalry, society and the situation have been stuck at a standstill in such cases."

The Court called for a collective action by the government, the public and the stakeholders to ensure that a person's financial condition does not determine whether they receive treatment.

He concluded the epilogue by stressing on the need for society and the healthcare system to strike a balance between making medical treatment affordable and maintaining adequate incentives.

The observations of Justice Menon came in a judgement where he had disposed of a suo motu proceedings which originated from a petition filed by a breast cancer patient seeking affordable access to a patented drug.

In the judgement, the Court examined the Central Government's power under the Patent Act, 1970, to intervene when life-saving patented medicines become unaffordable.

[Read Judgment]