A couple of months back, there were reports about Ratheena's debut venture "Puzhu" will feature Mammookka in a character that had ample shades of grey. It had undoubtedly piqued the attention of most movie aficionados including me, after all whenever the legend has essayed such a role he had left us amazed like Raghavan in "Munnariyippu", Patelar in "Vidheyan" or Ahmed Haaji in "Palerimanikyam". Well this flick also marked his debut in the OTT platform with DQ's Wayfarer Films having decided to release it on SonyLIV last night.
Kuttan (Mammookka) was a retired police officer who was presently involved in real estate deals & soon enough the audience is made aware of the fact that he had no dearth of enemies. He was a bigot in all sense of the word who believed that the low caste deserve to be oppressed & didn't think twice to enforce his supremacy over others. His hatred for the marginalised was also due to the fact that his sister, Bharati (Parvathy) had gone against the wishes of the family to tie the knot with Kuttappan (Appunni Sasi), a prominent drama artist though belonging to a lower caste. His attitude & demeanour was detested by many & one of them happened to be his son, Kichu (Vasudev Sajeesh). Having lost his mother early on, Kichu looked up to his father for emotional support but what was invariably dished out to him was a parenting style that bordered on being toxic. However, when Bharati moved in the same apartment complex; they hoped maybe that will help to bury the hatchet with her brother in due time. But did it???
Kudos to Ratheena's for an impressive debut & a generous amount of that compliment also goes to Harshad, Sharfu & Suhas for a compelling script, with the former having shown his credentials with "Unda" in the past. They have touched upon topics such as toxic parenting & caste oppression, both of which has been shown in an unapologetic manner & from the side of the oppressor. There is no attempt to empathize with the protagonist or make him moult into a perfect human being by the time the end credits roll. Ratheena does not try to preach & on the contrary, leaves it to the audience's discretion as to which side they are on. There is no doubt that the slow pace might not be everyone's cup of tea but it was certainly engaging for me. However, the climax felt rather hurried & the additional topic that they hastily tried to convey was not required is what I felt. On the technical side, Jakes Bejoy continued to impress with the minimal BGM & Theni Eshwar's visuals were fine.
Mammookka has been on an absolute roll with impressive performances in diverse roles in the three movies that he featured in this year. As Kuttan, he was just brilliant & showcased the various facets of his incredible caliber over the course of this flick. Vasudev was spot on as the tensed Kichu, Appuni Sasi finally got a role that showcased his talent as a theatre artist & he just got into it with glee while Parvathy was good as always despite the limited screen space.
Verdict: There is no doubt that until one gets engaged in the movie, it would come across as testing the patience at times as some of the sequences seemed repetitive. Even the drama sequence might not make much sense for ones who is not aware about the backstory of it. Despite these failings, it is still a worthwhile watch not just because of the topic it touches upon but also coz of the performances of Mammookka & Co. Do check it out!!!
Rating: 3/5
Regards...Ben
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