Our industry has seen numerous fantastic movies across genres over the years. However, I personally feel that there has been a lack of adequate praise worthy flicks that dealt with mythology and fantasy. One that instantly comes to mind is Santhosh Sivan's "Anandabhadram" (damn...I still cant believe that he made the pedestrian "Jack N' Jill") which was a proper blend of this genre. Hence when the trailer of Nirmal Sahadev's "Kumari" was launched, it certainly evoked expectations but managed to do justice only in parts. Eventually, it failed to win over the box office for obvious reasons.
Along with Fazal Hameed, Nirmal introduces us to the world of Kumari (Aishwarya Lekshmi) as a grandmother's tale who tells us about the dark forces that had descended on the affluent Kanjiragat family many generations back. The present patriarch, Velyachan (Spadikam George) gets his younger son, Dhruv (Shine Tom), a rather timid & eccentric individual married to Kumari. However, unknown to many was that there was more to this marriage than what met the eye.
First & foremost, kudos to the exquisite production quality which sets the stage for an engaging tale that begins promisingly. The colour tones & the haunting visuals of Abraham Joseph deserves special praise & the impact was further enhanced by Jakes Bejoy's music as well as the art department. Despite the slow pace, it builds the tempo in the first half with aspects like mystery & eeriness of the dark forces; but fails to sustain it as it felt like the makers had no clue how to give it a befitting climax.
Aishwarya has done a fine job as the protagonist while Shine Tom's performance resembled what he usually does in interviews. That doesnt mean that it was his fault as the character demanded that but his dialogue delivery was far from ideal with quite a few of them barely legible. Surabhi was top notch as Muthamma while others like Swasika, Tanvi etc. have done their parts well.
Verdict: There is no doubt that the makers have done a reasonably good job in terms of visuals & performances. But all of these has a limit especially if the script doesnt provide the killer punch & that's what has happened here. In short, a missed opportunity!!!
Rating: 2.5/5
Regards...Ben
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