A middle-aged man, Unni, and his three sisters struggle as the feudal way of life

becomes unviable in Kerala. Eventually, succumbing to the adverse conditions

surrounding him, Unni becomes helpless like a rat in a trap. The 'rat trap' is a metaphor
for a state of oblivion to changes in the external world, such as the disintegration of the
feudal system, in which some are caught and which leads to destruction.
Gopalakrishnan says in his interview that the movie was inspired by the feudal
characteristics of his own family. Silence is a huge trope in the move, with large swathes
of silence in dialogue.
The film is set in the now derelict manor house of an aristocratic family, that has
obviously seen better days. Unni, the patriarch, in spite of the looming changes in the
family's fortune and the times retains the old attitude and is portrayed as proud, and
incapable of adjusting to the impending downfall of his family and himself, and remains
oblivious to it. He is shown to spend most of his day in idleness and sleeping. His only
activities are reading the paper and oiling himself. He cannot take care of himself without
his sisters, and cannot face the taunts and the threats of his extended family and the
villagers. He needs to be propped up by his sisters who cook for him, clean for him, and
do chores for him. He is incapable of negotiating the changing outer world. The chief
theme of the film, according to Gopalakrishnan, is Unni's obliviousness to external
realities.
The sister Rajamma is destroyed by the silence of her brother, who does not support her
when she wants to get married - he turns down an offer because he felt it was beneath
his family - and keeps silent when she is ailing and dying.
Rajamma wears blue. Gopalakrishnan says he gave her blue to show her gentleness,
submissiveness, and being doomed. She is incapable of imagining how to chart her life
outside the patriarchy. She is shown to be constantly working for others and faithfully
looking after Unni.
The eldest sister wears green according to Gopalakrishnan to show earthiness,
practicality and intelligence- she has survived within the patriarchy by marriage and
bearing children. She worries about wealth and how to feed her family, and her main
concern is to claim her share of the family property and income. She is portrayed as
intransigent and self-centred.
The youngest sister, Sridevi wears red, which Gopalakrishnan says is to symbolize
revolt, youth and life. She is very pretty and highly concerned about her looks. She runs
away from the family, presumably with a lover.
Unni, according to Gopalkrishnan, is given a mixture of all three colours- white.
The feudal characteristics of the patriarchy is shown through the way Unni treats his
servants, the various people who visit him and most importantly how he treats Rajamma,
his sister who takes care of him. The music is throbbing, incomplete throughout the
movie to show the sense of sustained urgency, that the crippling patriarchal structure
results in (symbolized by the crippling mansion which is infested with rats). The rats are
caught by Sridevi and drowned just like Unni is eventually destroyed by the decline of the
feudal way of life.