Meanderings of a Messed up Mind...

15 minutes into Bhramaram, you slowly start realizing that this time around Blessy has worked towards showcasing Mohanlal the actor in a plot that does ample justice to his unquestionable talent and screen presence. The script relies totally and completely on his leading man and every other character is seen through the eyes of Sivankutty, the battered soul played soul stirringly by the Super Star.

I had heard that Blessy was basing "Bhramaram" on a premise similar to Bharathan's skilfully directed "Thaazhvaram" and I was hoping that it should not be the case since I knew very clearly that Blessy would not be able to do justice to a similar script. But, thankfully, Bhramaram is quite a different ball game altogether and Blessy, the director, scores a few notches higher than Blessy, the writer here.

Blessy's linear narrative style and the contrasting life styles of the 3 main players provide many layers of contradiction within the movie- allowing cameraman Ajayan Vincent to clearly bring out his talent with the lens. The initial 30 minutes of indoor drama within Unni Pillai's modern apartment suffocates not only Unni Pillai and his wife (Suresh Menon and Lakshmi Gopalaswamy) but also the audience. Cut it to the lush greenery and bright exteriors of a silent hamlet somewhere in Idukki district that forms the backdrop of Sivankutty's blessed family life and you realize that Blessy, thankfully, is in his elements here compared to his earlier outing.

While Blessy's choice of the 3 main actors is good- with Suresh Menon getting a chance to play something different from his comic persona that has been done to death on television and the hugely talented but neglected V G Muralikrishnan coming back into the limelight- he falters in the casting of Bhoomika Chawla who looks completely out of place amongst the rustic folk on the hills. Blessy's husband- wife duo always indulge in touchy- feely romance and I dont think a couple in real life would do such things in the presence of their kid daughter. The weakest link in the film is the casting and performance of the child artiste who plays Mohanlal's kid. Sobha Mohan's theatrical outburst at the wedding should not be reason enough for a 3 year old kid to start believing that her father is a murderer! On the other hand, the sprightly Nivedita scores as Suresh Menon's smart daughter. However, Blessy the writer can be a little more careful when he writes dialogues for his child characters in future- all his kids, right from Sanusha in Kazhcha to the child artiste in this one- mouth dialogues that are unbecoming and unnatural for real kids their age.

There is no point in discussing the limited screen time given to other actors- Lakshmi Gopalaswamy (who looks stunning as the upper middle class house wife), KPAC Lalitha, E A Rajendran, Fathima Babu or even Bhumika herself- the focus here is on the meanderings of Mohanlal's disturbed mind which has been brought out quite well.

Not that the film is free from flaws- the track involving the neighbouring Inspector and his wife could have easily been avoided, the lorry driver gazing and commenting on Mohanlal's genitals was crude, the journey to Mohanlal's place could have been cut short- all through one feels the absence of a talented editor with razor sharp scissors. Vinod Shankar is simply not good enough. Mohan Sithara's music is pedestrian but Anil Panachooran's lyrics endear the 2 songs to one and all. All other technical departments have done their job well.

This is easily Blessy's best till date but a little more care on scripting and direction would have made "Bhramaram" a classic. It falls short on certain parameters but there is no denying that it is a refreshingly good watch. Grab your tickets now!