Directed by :Amal Neerad (Kullante Bharya) ,Aashiq Abu(Gowri),Anwar Rasheed (Aami),Sameer Thahir (Esha),Shyju Khaled(Sethulakshmi)
Cast :
Sethulakshmi : Anika,Chethan,Guru Somasundaram
Esha : Isha Sharvani,Nivin Pauly
Gowri : Kavya Madhavan,Biju Menon,Tini Tom,Rimi Tomy,Shine Tom Chacko,Jayasurya
Kullante Bharya : Dulquer Salman,Muthumani,Reenu Mathews,Jinu Ben
Aami : Fahadh Faasil,Asmitha Sood,Honey Rose,Chemban Vinod Jose,Vinayakan
Music by : Gopi Sundar,Bijibal,Prashant Pillai,Yakzan Gary Pereira,Black Letters (promo)
Cinematography : Amal Neerad,Shyju Khalid,Rajeev Ravi,Ranadive,Alby
Review By : Unni R Nair (Kerala9.com )
For this film, which is an anthology, comprising of five separate short films, let’s do away with our usual review format.
Amal Neerad deserves to be appreciated to have undertaken to produce a film like ‘5 Sundarikal’, an anthology of films that seem to be made not for the box-office, but to touch chords in your hearts. He has teamed up with friends Anwar Rasheed, Aashiq Abu, Sameer Thahir and Shyju Khalid- all of whom have their own standing in Malayalam Cinema today- and delivers an anthology that can no doubt be called striking. Yes, ‘5 Sundarikal’ is a striking film; but, as a note of caution, let me add that in an anthology all works included may not be equally good. This is something that we have to understand, acknowledge and get resigned to.
Amal Neerad had been part of another anthology a few years back; he was one of the cinematographers in Ram Gopal Varma’s ‘Darna Zaroori Hai’. This time he is the producer, one of the directors and one of the cinematographers too. Good job, Amal!!
So, let’s now review each film in the anthology, one by one…
Sethulakshmi
An adaptation of a short-story by M.Mukundan, ‘Sethulakshmi’ is no doubt one of the best in the whole anthology.
Directed by Shyju Khalid, ‘Sethulakshmi’ tells the story of a little school girl named Sethulakshmi and pits childish innocence against some very grim realities. Sethulakshmi (Baby Anika), an innocent little child from a little village, has the habit of collecting wedding photographs published in newspapers. She pastes it on a notebook and sees it as one of her treasured collections. One day she shows it to her friend in school (played by Master Chetan), who too is impressed. Together they decide to go to a studio and take a photograph similar to those in Sethu’s collection…
Years back, when I had read this short story, it had sort of haunted me. I should say Shyju Khalid had made sure the story doesn’t lose its essence in any way. I am sure that the film would haunt you, if you are sensitive, at least to a small extent.
Baby Anika has delivered a sterling performance and Master Chetan too is good.
Esha
A retired army officer and his wife go for a party on New Year’s Eve, leaving their young daughter alone at home. A few minutes later a thief (Nivin Pauly) enters the house. The thief, named Jinu, is wearing a mask, that of Santa. He ties up the young girl in the house (Esha Sharvani) and starts his work- searching for valuables. The girl asks him to untie her aching legs and tells him where a diamond ring is kept. Finding the ring, Jinu unties her legs alone and keeps her tied to the chair. She then tells him that if he unties her and spends the night with her and celebrates New Year with her, she’d tell him where two of the most precious things in the house are kept. From here the story goes for a take-off…
Well, Sameer Thahir’s ‘Esha’ doesn’t match up to the standards set by the first film in the anthology. But it does retain your interest till the end and the final portion is impressive too. Nivin and Esha render their respective parts quite convincingly too…
Gauri
Aashiq Abu could have tried something better. It’s not that there is nothing interesting in his ‘Gauri’. It’s fairly good, watchable, but I feel that Aashiq Abu could certainly have tried something much more interesting. ‘Gauri’ doesn’t make much of an impression and could easily be forgotten…
Gauri Lakshmi (Kavya Madhavan), a dancer who teachers dance too lives with her husband Jonathan Antony (Biju Menon), in a Bungalow situated in a hill-station. Jonathan is passionate about trekking and goes hunting steep rocks in the surrounding area. They were passionately in love before getting married three years back; and now, it’s their marriage anniversary. Jonathan leaves, as usual, on his trekking expedition. Gauri, on waking up, finds a note left by Jonathan telling her he has left a gift, a big surprise, somewhere in the house for her. She has to find it out using certain clues… This is what makes for the climax of the film.
Well, as said earlier, ‘Gauri’ is OK, but it’s here that the anthology touches a low. Aashiq could definitely have delivered something better.
Kavya looks great as Gauri and performs well; Biju Menon is his usual self and does his part convincingly.
Kullante Bharya
This is the best to come from Amal Neerad, as a director. I had liked Amal’s debut directorial venture, ‘Big B’, and had felt that he would go on to deliver better films. But then, his subsequent films were disappointing, utterly disappointing. After seeing ‘Kullante Bharya’, I now wish ‘Sagar Alias Jackie’, ‘Anwar’ and ‘Bachelor Party’ hadn’t happened. ‘Kullante Bharya’ is a film made with master strokes and is no doubt Amal’s career best, as director.
The whole story is presented from the perspective of a guy (Dulquer Salman), who is rendered to a wheel-chair post a surgery and watches happenings around him from a window. It’s a housing colony with different kinds of people and all sorts of things happening. A young couple happens to come to stay at a recently vacated house. The others living there are surprised on seeing that the husband (Jinu Ben) is shorter than the wife (Reenu Mathews) and then tongues start wagging, making up all kinds of stories. Days and months pass by… people there, including kids call them Kullan (Dwarf) and Kullante Bharya (Dwarf’s wife), of course not within their hearing and make all kinds of speculations and spread stories about them, but they just go on, unperturbed by all this…
As said earlier, ‘Kullante Bharya’ is Amal’s career best till date and definitely one of the best in the whole anthology. The lead actors Reenu Mathews and Jinu Ben play their parts excellently well and Dulquer as the crippled narrator is good too.
Superb work, Amal!!
Aami
Anwar Rasheed has given us colourful entertainers starting from ‘Rajamaanickam’ and of course an unforgettable ‘Ustad Hotel’ too. But his best till date is no doubt ‘Bridge’, which was part of the anthology ‘Kerala Cafe’, helmed by Ranjith. Now Anwar comes up with another shortie… ‘Aami’, I’d say is nowhere near ‘Bridge’, but is an interesting film…
Ajmal (Fahadh Faasil), a young businessman who has invested a big amount intending to buy a plot in Kochi, is driving to Kochi from Malappuram, his hometown. All along the way, his wife Amina alias Aami (Asmitha Sood) keeps calling him, asking him tricky questions or riddles one after the other. The trip, for Ajmal, is eventful as lots of things happen one after the other, but what finally awaits him forms the crux of it all…
Interesting stuff, I’d say. Yes, ‘Aami’ is an interesting ride for any genuine film-lover. You may feel it has short-comings and flaws; but re-read it and you’d like it.
‘Aami’ is made wonderful by the presence of Fahadh Faasil, who gives an excellent performance once again. Asmitha Sood appears in one single scene and leaves an impact. Dhwani, Vinayagan and Chempan Vinod Jose are good.
It won’t be fair to expect a ‘Bridge’ from Anwar every time he makes a short film. So there’s no point in comparing ‘Aami’ to ‘Bridge’. ‘Aami’ is good, that’s all I’d say.
Taking stock of the anthology as a whole, I’d say this film is not for fans of the so-called ‘new generation’ flicks, which seem to made following some kind of a formula and pattern these days. ‘5 Sundarikal’ presents a compilation of films that are made with passion and hence have to be approached that way. The technical aspects are all superb, the music, in each short film in the anthology, is good.
Of the lot, ‘Sethulakshmi’ and ‘Kullante Bharya’ are the best, while ‘Aami’ is also good…
Verdict: Appreciable venture, good anthology. Go watch it, but don’t expect usual box-office stuff…
Rating- 3.5/5