all the insults that the community has faced over the years. Dheevara Sabha general secretary and ex-MLA V. Dinakaran told The News Minute that Malayalam cinema and serials for the last many decades have intentionally portrayed fisherfolk as "uncultured". Further stating “I was in college when I watched Chemmeen. I was shocked to see how the movie projected false stories of our community.” Legacy Chemeen is regarded as a classic in Indian cinema and has achieved cult status in Malayalam cinema; one of Kariat's most celebrated films, regarded by critics as a masterpiece of Malayalam cinema, credited with simultaneously helping to popularize South Indian cinema in the North and influencing later South Indian films. It became the first South Indian film to win President’s Gold Medal for the Best Film. The film also became the first Indian film to win the Certificate of Merit at the Chicago International Film Festival and the Gold Medal at the Cannes Film Festival. The Kerala State government conducted the golden jubilee celebrations of Chemmeen on April 8, 2017 in Alappuzha. CM Pinarayi Vijayan had inaugurated the event. In March 2019, C. S. Venkiteswaran of The Hindu wrote, "Omnipotent and omnipresent like the sea is the presence of the milieu; never before has the life of fisherfolk in all its beauty and misery been portrayed more vividly in Malayalam cinema. Even when they bicker and fight, they readily share all the sorrows and celebrations of life." He further writes, "Chemmeen worked with the most elemental in individual and society, communal and personal life, human emotions and yearnings, which may be the reason why it still holds its mercurial charm." In September 2020, Anna M. M. Vetticad of Firstpost wrote, "Ramu Kariat’s Chemmeen gave me my maiden memory of being mesmerized by the visual aspect of the audiovisual media. In February 2022, Piyush Roy of The Hindu called Chemmen "A highpoint of Malayalam cinema" and called it "a fine artistic work of human passion." and praised its soundtrack in particular, which Roy felt was the highpoint of the film. He writes, "The high point of Chemmeen, however, is its music that brings together a talented pool of music-makers from north and south. Bollywood music director Salil Chowdhury weaves a timeless score, as he captures the unique sounds of the kaleidoscopic setting." In 2013, in an online poll conducted by CNN-IBN on their website as part of