Hamsadhwani — Pachuvum Athbutha Vilakkum
Akhil Sathyan makes a grand directorial debut with a romcom that’s reminiscent of his legendary father Sathyan Anthikad’s films. Just that Sathyan Junior brings subtle little feels to upgrade the formula, keeping with the evolving grammar of cinema. If his brother Anoop Sathyan created a rousing and subversive middle-aged female lead (in Varane Avashyamund), in Pachuvum… you have a young, assertive, no-nonsense Hamsadhwani (Anjana Jayaprakash in a charming debut) who makes short shrift of anyone who tries to boss her around. Her relationship with Pachu (Fahadh Faasil) doesn’t quite have a fairytale start. In fact, the man is a tad intimidated by her candour and her fierce independence to begin with. But then slowly it peels away, to reveal a woman who is still grieving the death of her brother and gives out poignant and deeply moving insights about life. Their love is never spelt out; it just grows on you as both of them try to make sense of where life is taking them. Undoubtedly it is Hamsadhwani who towers over the rest in the film. Watch it here.
Mattanchery Moidu — Thuramukham
This Rajeev Ravi film, set in colonial-era India, focuses on the harbour workers’ riot against the Chappa (system of) labour allocation. In this setting, Mattanchery Moideen (a fantastic Nivin Pauly) is an anomaly. Despite being born into poverty and having witnessed his family being oppressed all his life, Moideen ends up allying with his dictators. He is greedy, debauched and reckless and coldly overlooks the struggles of his widowed mother and siblings. Even his intention of offering shelter to orphaned Umani is with the intention of preying on her. That it is played by Pauly — the poster boy of romance — makes it even more fascinating. Till the end, Moideen remains unrepentant and eventually gets his just deserts. Stream it now.
Sebastian — Purusha Pretham
What makes SI Sebastian (Prashanth Alexander) a fascinating cop study is the contradiction in this police procedural drama directed by Krishand. At work, SI Sebastian is a foul-mouthed tyrant who gives dramatic spins to his regular capers, talks down to his elderly aide and is egoistic and chauvinistic. He judges a woman for choosing herself and yet desperately seeks the help of another when he is in a fix. At home, Sebastian cowers before his abusive mother who doesn’t have a kind word for him, despite the son dutifully cooking and caring for her. He is the guy who takes out his frustrations on powerless people and gloats over it. Even his relationship with his current lover comes from a space of exploitation and later it progresses into something deeper and more vulnerable. He is relatable and grey. Watch it here.
Kannan — Thankam
A Kannan (Vineeth Sreenivasan) can be found in every household: that older brother or son who has been shouldering the burdens of his family for years and doesn’t quite know any other way to live. But despite having to take responsibility from a very young age, Kannan doesn’t carry it visibly on his shoulders. He is cheerful and optimistic, has a special bond with Muthu (Biju Menon) who is several years his senior and if need be, will also scold the latter for his reckless behaviour. Directed by Saheed Arafath and written by Syam Pushkaran, this murder mystery’s final reveal skillfully underlines Kannan’s complexity, which he has always hidden from everyone. Now streaming here.
Bachu’s parents, and Baanu — Kadina Kadoramee Andakadaham
Though this film (directed by Muhashin) pivots around Bachu (Basil Joseph) and his cup of woes that overflow during the pandemic, the unexpected bit of poignancy comes from his much-in-love elderly mother and father. The telephonic conversations between Bachu’s mother (Sreeja Ravi) and his Gulf-employed father beautifully establish their love that has remained rock solid over the years. True, the mother is a stereotypical sacrificial, loving celluloid mother and the father is the financially fraught man of the family but that didn’t seem to have encumbered their love at any point. And Bachu’s former sweetheart, Baanu (Parvathy R Krishna), is also depicted as a woman who has finally decided to take charge of her life. Now a single mother, she ignores the conservatives and decides to follow her heart and be with Bachu. That it is done with minimum fuss makes it even more effective. Available to stream.
Jimmy — Ntikkakkakkoru Premandaarnnu
Jimmy (Sharaf U Dheen) has a baby sister who dotes on him, is at odds with his father for choosing a business he doesn’t approve of, and generally leads a quiet life. Then he reunites with his college sweetheart Nithya and his world literally turns upside down. That’s when he realises that he never really got over her. What makes Jimmy endearing is his vulnerability, his gentleness and his decision to allow kindly fate to play Cupid between them. He empathises with her predicament (trying to separate from her toxic husband) and gives her enough time to figure out things. And now that fate has given him another chance, he is willing to wait for Nithya for a lifetime. Playing here.
