Before US & Europe came to the fore, the bond between Malayalis & the Gulf had been set in stone as many had travelled to the desert nation to carve their destiny. As expected this has been the subject of numerous movies & with an increase in production costs, many projects are even getting shot in those regions. Just a month into 2023 & we have already seen quite a few of them such as Aamir Pallikal's "Ayisha" & Ameen Aslam's "Momo in Dubai". Though both of them do not essentially belong to the same genre, they were both born from the pen of Ashif Kakkodi & he does leave quite a few teary eyed with the emotional drama that unfolded.
Ayisha
This was a project that has been in the news for quite a while primarily because a significant number of the cast & crew were from the Gulf itself. For the uninitiated, it is a biopic & based on an eventful chapter of the iconic Nilambur Ayisha's life, who is referred as the first lady from their community to perform in dramas & movies. In 1988, Ayisha (Manju Warrier) moved to Saudi to work as a gaddama for one of the royal families. The head of the family was an ailing matriarch known as Mama (Mona Essay) & the bond that developed between Ayisha & her, forms the basis of the plot. Both of them have done their parts well though I would rate Mona, a tad higher & the chemistry between the two were palpable. As for the rest of the cast, most of them have done their parts aptly (though some did come across as artificial).
Apart from their relationship, the makers weren't quite able to add credible content to imply the steely resolve & character of Ayisha. As an audience who might not be aware of her legacy, it would feel rather odd & half baked to see the people flocking to the palace to get a glimpse of Ayisha and the reception she gets at the market. On the technical side, Vishnu Sharma's visuals were fine along with M Jayachandran's music. However, the 'kannilu kannilu' track despite being good seemed like an odd addition to this movie.
Verdict: As a biopic, I certainly dont think it has been able to do justice though the chemistry between the protagonists makes it an endearing watch!!!
Rating: 2.25/5
Momo in Dubai
Apart from Ashif, Zakariya Mohammed had also been part of the scripting process & that was the main attraction for me to check this out. Over here, the story is placed in the UAE & treads a path similar to that of Sidharth Siva's "Kochuvva Paulo Ayyappa Coelho". Momo (Athrey) harboured hopes of seeing the Burj Khalifa & it seemed like he would be able to realize his dream when his father who worked in the Gulf flies in his family for their vacation. However, it didn't quite pan out as he had planned.
Despite a run time of just over 100 mins, it still felt like Ratheesh Raj could have done a better job on the editing board. The makers had maintained a positive vibe throughout the movie & captures the life of a NRI pretty organically with the family being quite understanding & not overwhelmed by the hardships that they face. The relationship between the parents was also well captured & kudos to both Aneesh Mohan and Anu Sithara for their fine performance. All the three kids have done their parts well along with Johny Antony.
Verdict: More often than not, it is difficult to come across movies nowadays that could be deemed as healthy & watchable for the kids. In that sense, this is a clean family drama!!!
Rating: 2.5/5
Regards...Ben
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