The WC has finally come to an end & the manner in which it concluded was just brilliant to say the least. Since most of the evenings were spent watching the WC, I haven't quite had the time to pen my opinion about a few of the movies that I had watched. One of them was Mahesh Narayanan's "Ariyippu" which had many sit up & take notice ever since it has garnered interest at various film festivals. The latest feather to be added to Mahesh's hat was when it received the NETPAC award for the best Malayalam movie at IFFK. It premiered on Netflix last week & I was curious yet apprehensive initially to check it out since it had an arty slow paced feel to it.
This is a movie that is quite unlike what we had seen from Mahesh in the past & the talented film-maker deserves praise for the same as his script is on the complexities of the human character. He had chosen to place his protagonists in Noida where a couple, Hareesh & Reshmi (Chackochan & Divya Prabha) are working in a glove manufacturing company. They had moved to the city in the hope that it would facilitate their decision to migrate abroad but the pandemic had put a spanner to their plans. However, they kept trying through a travel agency & in order to showcase their skill set, they decided to shoot a video of it in their company. Little did they realise that it would make them go through scenarios that they had least expected.
There is no doubt that despite the slow pace it still had an engaging feel to it & that was because of the way the lead pair reacted to the various situations that they are made to go through. This includes the scandalous video issue & the malpractice that was happening within the factory that was kept under wraps. It takes a toll on their relationship dynamics & it becomes a clash of their conscience, idealism, ego etc. The frames are pretty stark & Sanu Varghese conveys the mood of the movie effectively.
Another major positive in the movie was the casting & performances as all of them looked the part perfectly. Divya Prabha has done a fine job in terms of her dialogue delivery which makes us feel the helplessness yet a solid character when the situation arose. Giving her excellent support was Chackochan who showcases the vulnerabilities of Hareesh perfectly & the manner in which his thought process keeps changing depending on the situation which can be said to be a blend of realism & selfishness. The rest of the cast have also done justice to their roles be it Kiran Peethambaran (as Mohan), Athulya Ashadam (as Sujaya), Danish Husain (as Kailash) etc.
Verdict: Well the movie has already got positive publicity by way of its performance at film festivals. There is no doubt that it is an engaging movie & taken in a realistic manner without any unnecessary drama. However, I do have a feeling that the slow pace of the movie will earn quite a few detractors & would feel that it didnt quite match their expectations. As for my opinion, I would suggest giving it a try!!!
Rating: 3/5
Regards...Ben
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