As Time Goes by, Where do I live

In a previous era, my days and my life were based on the seasons. Summer meant vacations and freedom where even the stifling heat could not tire my spirit and body. There was always energy for one more game and always time for one more innings. Rains meant  a new school year, fresh books and drenched uniforms. Months and time of the day did not really matter for all that mattered were the seasons, and every season was always something to look forward to, something to be excited about and something to wait for.

In summer, I used to visit my grandparents place and there would be cousins to play with, elders telling us not to step into the sun and to be careful. But that has changed- one of my cousins is already married, grandparents are gone and we have built a new house in the same place where they had lived. But it is literally and figuratively impossible to recognise that I am at exactly the same place.

It is time that has changed and my life is no longer a matter of seasons, but of weekdays and weekends. The seasons are no longer significant- not just because they have become mixed up due to climate change- but life goes on no matter what. In the same place- which I used to wait anxiously to visit and where I used to play to my hearts content- in the same time of the year, there are no changes with the season. Do I wish those old days were back? That is where the period between my school days and working life taught me valuable lessons.

There was a period between the happy summer vacations and the normal summer days of now- university and civil service exam days. Summer, especially April brought the heat of Test2, lab exams and imminent compre. It was hectic and I wanted breathing space and time to relax- now I wish I was careful what I had wished for. What came next was an era that destroyed the seasons in the way usual people understand and brought Prelims, Post-Prelims, Mains, waiting anxiously, (disappointing) results and recovery seasons. When solely occupied (rather obsessed by exams), what happened everywhere else did not matter and I lost sense of time. The wait was killing, it was depressing and disappointing- time merely disappeared and it was just existence in the hope of something better some day- an endless wait. Three years went by as I stood still, waiting...

What has that taught me? To live in the present because I have control only over my present happiness and I can be happy no matter what the time, season or situation in life. To learn from the past and forget about the rest of it since it cannot come back but can guide me in my future. To build for the future so that I can be happy then too, no matter what the season or the event.

It is time for Selfies in Malayalam Cinema

I was initially sceptical when I went for the movie. I expected it to be another 'Neram' or '1983', but what I saw was quite impressive. It is a worthy successor to the great comedies of 80s and 90s in Malayalam. The name itself is a sign of the shifting times, from 'Oru Vadakkan Veeragadha' to 'Oru Vadakkan Selfie' symbolosises the shift in our lives, the tales we tell and in our movies.


The movie begins on a new generation theme with the hero failing hopelessly in his education, a song 'enne thellendammava njan nannavoola' and an attempt to create a short film to launch the hero on his path to tinseltown. Then, there are serious twists and interesting plots which make for a crazy and suspense filled ride.

What I like about the movie is its ability to bring in comedy without being vulgar. This is what makes it the true inheritor to great Malayalam movies of yore and this success is even more appreciable and evident when we see the poor attempts by a star of yore to pull along another movie with his old and repeated line of acting and comedy. V. Selfie uses exaggerated situational comedy, something the great comedies were very good at. It makes us literally laugh out loud and brings out issues that are of relevance in our society today, be it hartal or online fraud or safety issues in mobile cameras. It thus uses comedy to bring different flavours out of a solid story.

The acting seems natural, with even veteran Vijayaraghavan keeping his place as the father of the hero, Aju Varghese does well as the stupid side-kick whose antics land the hero in trouble, Manjima does well as the female lead and Vineeth Sreenivasan does his part comedy part serious role well too. Nivin Pauly deserves special plaudits for his performance where he lends credibility to the academically challenged and happy go lucky but compassionate hero.

The scene that struck me the most was when the hero realised how he had let his father down and rings him up in the middle of the night to seek forgiveness. I was disappointed since I expected an all to familiar reconciliation and "all is well between father and son" scene. What came next was just brilliant and it is moments like these that make the movie original, funny and worth watching. The songs are not poetic or something that deserves high praise, but in this movie, their funny tone and lyrics provide brilliant backdrops and leitmotifs. The art and camerawork deserve praise too for the scenes in a crowded temple, moving bus, hideout etc.

This definitely is a family movie, something that the entire family can watch and enjoy, even if some of it feels unfamiliar and disagreeable. That is because the movie is at its core a good comedy rooted in the present- hence unfamiliar to some, and comedy must always be exaggerated- hence it cannot be natural. Expect to laugh a lot, keep singing or humming some of the silly songs that would stay with you and appreciate a really smart and funny movie.

PS- There are notable similarities with the movie 'Neram', but 'Neram' is not effective in its comedy as this one and is more absurd- a bit over exaggerated.

Indian Sherlock too gets an upgrade

I have not read Byomkesh Bakshi stories before and so this was my first glimpse into the world of Indian Sherlock Holmes. It was an experience that makes me want to go back again and again. It deserves appreciation on multiple fronts- I have not seen something this good in a long long time, the last time being 'Kahaani', which too has Calcutta as its backdrop.

But the Calcutta in Byomkesh Bakshi is different. It is the one from 1943, when World War2, drug smuggling, Japanese invasion of India and freedom struggle formed the backdrop. The plot involves multiple twists and turns, suspense, action, a bit of romance and even a femme fatale. It keeps us guessing, makes us ask questions and finally reveals the plot in a creative and interesting sequence. Full marks to the story.

The depiction of Calcutta of the era was brilliant along with the acting. Each actor portrays their role effectively and with skill. I was also drawn in by the graphic novel type imagery they produced- something new in India- which reminded my of Guy Ritchie and Quentin Tarantino, but without their unrealistic depictions and hyperbole.

The movie also stays away from the usual bollywood masala and pointless songs, squeezed in comedy and action sequences. Every moment is important to the plot and it is a pleasure to watch the dots being connected and to try and do it ourselves.

In short, its a really good movie. A must watch, a good entertainer, something to cherish as well as look forward to sequel hopefully. These are the sort of movies we need to entertain us, these are the sort of movies that we need to watch and take to box office collection records, not mind numbing and idiotic ones that have been crowned as successes.

Now, let me order the book and read!

Forever..Always..NEVER!

This is not a review of the latest flop in Malayalam movies, but my views on why it is such an agony and disappointment to watch the greats fall from their pedestal. The movie is being advertised as the dream combination of Mohanlal + Sathan Anthikkad + Manju Warrier, but it seems like only one of them really went into the movie knowing their jobs while the other two merely marked their presence without being really necessary to the movie and thus failed to stamp their unique trademarks.

Firstly about the one who was essential to the movie and literally breathes some life into the movie- Mohanlal does his best to raise an ordinary character, plot and dialogues to remarkable levels. Even when he is repeating previous trademark lines, it seems new and original. His acting and comedy however remains underutilised in a story that is so ordinary.

This is where I am so disappointed as Sathyan Anthikkad fails to bring together comedy, trials and tribulations of a divorcee and family bonds in a believable story. The plot has a lot of unnecessary elements right from the "evil" CEO of a construction conglomerate, the "cruel"husband, the elderly couple in the neighbourhood, the perfect mother, the new task oriented editor-in-chief and sad hints of a love triangle. It is definitely the fault of the script-writer that the movie is so lame, but when Sathyan Anthikkad lends his name to a film, the fault must be laid at his feet.

Finally, my biggest personal disappointment- Manju Warrier. I was deeply irritated by the lameness of her first come back movie. This one is just slightly better and that is because her character has a minimal role in the movie and could have been done by just about anybody. There was little to mess up, very few scenes for her and even fewer dialogues. Perhaps it is rustiness which has made her dialogue delivery clearly artificial while expressions have improved a little bit, maybe the effect of so many dance scenes squeezed into the movie.

There are a few who deserve a good word in this movie. Innocent and Lenna, whose roles are totally irrelevant and filled with pointless dialogues do justice to their job. Finally, a word about the audience- the movie is being welcomed with both hands not because it is remotely good, let alone great, but because there are simply NO alternates in this holiday season. There are no other movies that we can watch with our families- parents, children, siblings and grandparents together- and this makes 'Ennum Eppozhum' a superhit. So it is not just the greats that have fallen from their pedestal, but malayalam movies as a whole which has in turn forced the audience to settle for far less than what they have got from these greats.