Diwali season is the time when Hindi & Tamil movies rule the roost due to which the last couple of weeks has been quite silent at the box-office as far as Malayalam films were concerned (except for "Vellimoonga" which I unfortunately missed out). Though I had watched "Happy New Year" & "Bang Bang", it was so mediocre that I didn't feel like writing review for it. However, this week we have Mammookka's "Varsham" hitting the screens & since it is helmed by Ranjith Shankar, I naturally have high hopes pinned on it.
Venugopal (Mammookka) is a successful private financier for whom the Gandhian notes had much more significance than virtues like compassion or empathy. For Venu & his wife, Nandhini (Asha Sarath) their whole world revolved around their son, Anand (Prajwal Prasad), who was the apple of their eyes. In today's world of cut-throat competition, both Venu & Nandhini were fierce competitors for whom their son was the means through whom they expected to accomplish their hopes & ambitions. But fate takes a cruel swipe at them, as their son's life was cut short; leaving Venu shattered. Though Nandhini makes an effort to come to terms with their loss, Venu was neither consolable nor had the will to think ahead. What ultimately causes a change in Venu's attitude towards life & how that in turn proves to be a blessing for many others forms the crux of the movie.
Right from the time Ranjith Shankar burst into the scene with "Passenger", I have been a fan of his movies as it always dealt with individuals & scenarios that we have either experienced or accustomed to. In "Varsham", he gives us a peek into the pressures that parents burden their children with invariably to satisfy their whims & fancies. Ranjith also makes a fleeting mention about the blade mafia, though that lacked fizz towards the climax. The first half gives us a glimpse of the self centred life of Venu while the latter half depicts as to how he tries to pick up the pieces of his life after his son's demise. The emotional scenes are just fantastic, as it well & truly tugs at our heart chords. Bijibal has done a credible job with the music & BGM while Manoj's frames were fine.
What do I say about Mammookka...he is a maestro when it comes to emotional drama & he has excelled at it yet again. The legend has the ability to make us feel the character's pain & you cant help it as our eyes does well up at times. Asha Sarath has done a fine job as Nandhini along with Mamtha Mohandas who makes her presence felt after a hiatus. Prajwal Prasad was convincing while Sunil Sukhada, Sudheer Karamana & Hareesh Peradi did their parts aptly. However, I felt T.G Ravi's character lacked the menace that it required.
Verdict: The film will definitely have an impressive initial thanks to the wide release & credentials of the cast and crew. It is not one with a whole lot of twists & turns, but rather one which makes us realise as to how fickle life is and that many of us happen to be cut from the same cloth. I dont have any qualms in admitting that my eyes did moisten in some of the sequences & I do feel that you guys got to definitely check it out especially for Mammookka's performance!!!
Rating: 3.5/5
Regards...Ben
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