The Kerala Police force has carved for themselves a quirky niche on Twitter, with their self-aware humour, slapstick videos and feel-good tweets about their daily activities.
Despite having 259 COVID-19 patients in Kerala, which necessitates stringent measures to curb the disease, their Twitter handle brims with goodwill and humour.
This hand wash/mask awareness video was actually conceptualised by a member of the police force, and executed by a local media team. It was also timed to perfection, just as 'Ramayan' made its second innings debut on Doordarshan.
Tracer Bullet Challenge!
In another video, Kerala Police goes after those violating the lockdown with the help of a drone. But even in such a 'hunting' operation, they've added a bit (quite a lot, actually) of humour.
Taking off from Ravi Shastri's 2016 'Tracer Bullet' challenge, they've used commentary featuring the word, everytime someone tries to outrun the drone.
The video in itself is hilarious, with some people hiding their faces with their 'lungi', others trying to hide behind a coconut tree, while still others trying to outrun the drone itself!
Here's another drone video released by them, but with a 'Kerala flavour' mixed in.
Record Dip, And Cinema
The Kerala Police isn't averse to taking a dig at themselves either. In this advert, they talk about how they're proud of a record dip in crime in the state, and attribute the 'success' to the COVID-19 virus.
Of course, memes using cinema are never off limits, especially when it comes to using iconic scenes, such as this one, from Manichithrathazhu, where Suresh Gopi asks Shobhana not to go out.
Unlike in the movie, where Shobana throws a fit, the scene was altered to show her coyly agreeing to stay in. You can read multiple meanings in that climax, but the main point is this; Stay Home. Stay Safe!
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