Vanaprastham (വാനപ്രസ്ഥം) is an Indian-French-German produced feature film based on a French story by Pierre Assouline. The film follows the tale of a lower-caste Kathakali artist Kunhikuttan (Mohanlal) during the 1940s era in Travancore. He struggles to come to terms with the rejection and estrangement of his father, a member of an upper caste who denies his son. Poor, unhappy, and stuck in an arranged marriage that provides no relief, he gets by for the sake of his daughter. One night, whilst performing as Arjuna from the epic Mahabharata on stage, his dance is witnessed by Subhadra (Suhasini), a well educated member of an aristocratic family. Defying the norms of India's rigid caste system, they have a son, but it soon becomes clear that Subhadra loves the character Arjuna from his stage performances, and not Kunhikuttan the dancer. More in love with the valiant, noble hero of the Mahabharata, than the dancer Kunhikuttan, she rejects him and refuses to let him see his son.