Thiruvananthapuram, Sept. 4: Kerala has just observed a "black" Onam, but grief or protest had nothing to do with it.

"I want a black kurta," a young boy insisted at an apparel store, rejecting the colourful ones his father had picked from the shelves.

"Black? Come on," said the perplexed father, but the son wouldn't budge.

A fellow shopper intervened, turning to the father to utter just one word: " Premam."

The father's lips puckered into an "o", implying clarity had dawned.

Premam (Love), a Malayalam movie released three months ago and still screening, has captured young Kerala's imagination. Also, it made black trendy during the just-concluded 10-day Onam festival season.

The film's hero and his friends appear in black shirts and white dhotis in several scenes, especially the popular "freshers' day" sequence in their college where, in a macho act, they appear in beards and dark glasses.

Boys and girls are now coming to college in black - unless bunking off for a fresh viewing of the movie, which has turned actor Nivin Pauly into a superstar. One of its three heroines, Sai Pallavi, is now known better by her screen name of Malar.

Dharma Perumal, the manager at a garment showroom here, said: "Every second person wants only black; we ran out of stocks in a day."

Some of the recent news from across the state:

Police have launched an "Operation Gurukulam" to nab children dodging school to watch the movie.

At St. Teresa's women's college in Kochi, a group of girls have proved in black and white that Premam was not just about "men in black".

Trivandrum zoo authorities have denied reports that the male tiger brought from Delhi would be named "George" after Premam's hero because the female it is expected to mate with is called "Malar".

Official Kerala is aghast at the youngsters' obsession with the film and its sartorial choice and is cracking the whip.

Newman College in central Kerala suspended senior students who dressed up Premam style to welcome newcomers before letting them off a day later.

Students of the Adoor government engineering college, about 75km from here, jazzed up their Onam revelry by wearing the Premam colours and hiring a fire engine to facilitate a "rain dance". They have been booked for obstructing traffic while seven fire brigade personnel have been suspended.

A young woman IPS officer has landed in controversy after getting an MLA to click her with the film's lead actor, Nivin Pauly, at a public event and then getting "caught" on video while uploading the photo on her Facebook page.

The police have even blamed Premam's influence for the death of a college girl during Onam revelry.

At the prestigious Central Engineering College, Trivandrum, civil engineering student Thasni Basheer, 21, was run over on the campus after some hostel boys defied orders by taking out an Onam motorcade. The boy driving the jeep and a dozen others riding with him were dressed Premam style, and some were allegedly drunk.

While drinking and unruly behaviour did not originate with Premam, the authorities seem to be increasingly identifying black-and-white with lawlessness.

State police chief T.P. Senkumar has accused new generation films, without naming Premam, of "portraying women in a poor light and giving prominence to liquor and drugs''.

In Premam, George is often seen drinking. Also, his attempts to woo three women -one of them his teacher and another a schoolgirl - have been seen by some as setting the wrong example.

Screenwriter and actor Murali Gopy, however, has trashed Senkumar's allegations."Sure, the cinema is responsible for all that's happening around us. All those who watched Richard Attenborough's Gandhi became Gandhians; all those who watched The Passion of the Christ became staunch Christians," he was quoted as saying.

"Let's ban cinema and start a devotional choir and see how the world transforms back into a safe place without world wars, dictators, bloodshed, rape, arson, looting... and without youngsters who happen to fall in love with their teachers."

Amid the controversies, Kozhikode district collector Prasanth Nair, a social media darling because of his people-friendly measures, has used the Premam craze to provide a lighter moment.

He turned up as George, complete with a false beard, at Onam celebrations organised by his district's tourism council. Congress politician K.C. Abu, who has gained unpopularity by accusing Nair of ignoring his calls, was dressed as Mahabali, the mythical king whose "return" to Kerala every year is celebrated as Onam. The audience was in splits as Abu, on stage, requested Nair not to avoid his calls in future.

As for Merin Joseph, IPS, the administration is giving the controversy a quiet burial. Senkumar told this newspaper that no explanation had been sought from the young assistant superintendent of police in Kochi.

Joseph has defended her actions on Facebook. "The pic (with Pauly) was taken by MLA Hibi Eden after securing his consent and that too, during a lighter moment... over a shared joke," she has posted.