Malayalee From India Review: Nivin Pauly's Daring Outing With Universal Themes
In a recent interview, Fahadh Faasil, one of the torch-bearers of the recent creative explosion in the Malayalam movie industry, said, as industry and audience, we all are ready to accept any change in the content. Dijo Jose Antony, the director of Queen and Jana Gana Mana, with Malayalee from India, has tried everything at his disposal to deliver a story that encompasses several themes of political satire, humanity, love surpassing borders and revolutionary ideas about education and survival. Nivin Pauly, the captain of the ship, anchors the movie in a perfect place, however falls short in some areas as the content discussed in the movie is mostly political and social, and many creators have struggled to find a balance in the treatment.
(Spoiler alert) The movie is about Gopi (Nivin Pauly), a jobless, lazy and irresponsible youth from a village in Kerala and how he makes some universal connections as life and twists in the tale forces him to travel to Arabian desert and Pakistan. As they thread through their “irresponsible” life in their village, some unwanted and careless act of Gopi and his friend force Gopi to leave the village and he ends up in Arabia, where he gets a job in a farm deep inside the desert (you will start to getting an Aadujeevitham vibe here). There, he starts his life fighting with his Pakistani supervisor, but some developments in their life make them friends. And at the end, Gopi travels to Pakistan to meet his foe-turned-friend”s daughter.
Nivin Pauly is getting better with each movie as an actor as his filmography grows, but basic mannerisms remain same. The advantage Nivin has with Gopi is there is enough room for him to spread his hands and deliver, in which he was successful up to a level. The performance of Nivin Pauly in Malayalee from India is truly an upgrade from actor-character in Varshangalkku Shesham which was released recently.
Dhyan Sreenivasan has also improved as an actor, but, the character leave him where he usually thrives – a comic whom the fans wants to seen as it is.
Deepak Jethi as Gopi”s supervisor in the desert farm is composed in his angst, fury and agony and his story and character will haunt the audience for a long. Manju Pillai, again proves what a gem actress she is as Gopi”s mother in the movie. Anaswara Rajan, the star of Neru and emerging actress in Malayalam film industry, had few scenes on screen as Krishna, the love interest of Gopi.
It is not all the positive this writer sees in the movie. There are flaws in the writing. The writing has touched one of the volatile subject in the political present with satire and some drama. When it was all satire, the movie was up to the point in connecting the Malayalee psyche to the realities of growth and perception of right wing politics in the Southern state of India. However, the nuances were missing as the narrative presented in the move were in line with the popular narratives in Kerala, those are mostly one sided or over the top.
Again, as Gopi is fighting to uplift a girl with education in Pakistan, this writer felt the scenes were cringe and exaggerating. But, the “Mayalalee Bhaijan” take is new and interesting to watch. The way Malayalee from India is trying to convey universal ideas of humanism, love and education is refreshing.
This latest release from Malyalam is trying to discuss some important issues of our times, but lacking in details. However, the comedy, the intense drama and the adventures the creators undertake make the movie worth a watch.
Timeline rating: 3/5
