Maheshinte Prathikaaram (Malayalam, 2016)

It is a testament to the magic of films & film-making that a simple tale as this can be turned into a fabulous film. The narrative turns on his head around about the interval mark with stunning writing & execution of a series of events leading to a conflict. It deals with a variety of themes with the most poetic one being the ‘film vs digital’ photography debate. Aashiq Abu must be lauded for believing in Dlieesh Pothan & Syam Pushkaran to execute such an idea into a charming full-blown feature film which radiates realism & local culture.

In Tamilnadu we don’t get to see all of Fahaadh Fasil’s films but when we get to watch films like Iyobinte Pusthakam, Bangalore Days, North 24 Kaatham & Annayum Rasoolum he seems to be completely in a league of his own. Of course, there may be many downers which do not cross his state borders. But in Maheshinte Prathikaram, he brings his A-game to the table and aces his role of a photographer who runs a studio in Idukki. His affection towards his father, his first-love, his friends & his justified anger are brought out wonderfully in his face & body-language. In short it looked like he BELONGED!

The film has supporting actors aplenty and they add immense value to the tale shining in their respective spaces. The people who come to mind immediately are Mahesh’s dad, adorable Baby played by Alancier Lay and of course not to miss Crispin played by Soubin Shahir whose monologue on Kireedam is one of the best dialogue modulations I’ve seen in recent times.

The music blends in so well that I don’t remember the songs that come mostly as montages partly due to lack of knowledge of the language but more so due to the fact that they are so organically embedded within the script.

In a script filled with people who seem to be localites it is natural to cast “fair-skinned” ladies just to “attract” the audience. Some directors make an effort to say that the lady is from Punjab settled in Kerala or simply Anglo-Indian. But here, surprisingly, even the ladies are from God’s Own Country. It looks like the glossy diva-like actresses from Kerala are in Tamizh cinema while the people who can really perform & blend into the roles have stayed in Kerala. There are exceptions though!

The cinematography is brilliant without any nature porn which would have been so easy to do given the locale. The lighting is so perfect that normal-looking women such as Anu Sree & Aparna Balamurali like looks absolutely alluring on screen. The flash mob sequence is well done with an ode to Tamizh songs that seems to be the norm these days in Malayalam cinema.

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