Virus (2019) - Malayalam Movie Review

What happens when a bunch of truly talented artists comes together to tell the tale of some real-life heroes and sheroes? Brilliantly crafted and realistically narrated movie like Virus will be its creation, one can undoubtedly say.

By far the best of Aashiq Abu’s career, Virus skilfully stages the anxiety-inducing moments of the Nipah virus outbreak that happened in Kozhikode and Malappuram districts of Kerala. Instead of over-dramatization of real events, writers Muhsin Parari, Suhas and Sharfu chose to painstakingly research the incidents and construct a script so gripping that in spite of knowing all about it, you will find yourself at the edge of your seat.

Keeping the central character as Nipah, director Aashiq Abu, carefully and compassionately unfolds the plot under the masterful cinematography by Rajeev Ravi, with additional support provided by Shyju Khalid. Brilliant editing by Saiju Sreedharan and riveting music by Sushin Shyam adds the cherry on top.

No unnecessary diversions, over glorification of characters or any kind of efforts to milk a tragedy of such magnitude, Virus instead focusses on a bunch of imperfect normal human beings who rose to the occasion; some who fought the battle and lived to tell the tale and some who bravely fought but are not with us anymore. 

Virus is filled with moments which will touch your heart, like the helpless mother’s question about whether everyone hates her son who apparently was the source for the spread of virus or the letter sister Akhila left for her husband.

To bring together a stellar cast and technical crew to pull of such a survival medical thriller is not an easy job. Aashiq Abu and team successfully ensembled the multi- starrer with some of the best of talents from the industry. From Babu, a hospital helper (an exceptional Joju George), to a senior health official Baburaj (Indrajith Sukumaran), big or small, each character had a role to play and unlike other multi starrers, the artists were not competing with each other for space but did their respective parts with confidence, making Virus a truly artistic creation and stands as a testament to the community who fought the battle.  Infact Virus brings many of the stars out of their regular typecast roles, like Kunchako Boban as Dr. Suresh Rajan different from the stereotypical roles he has been playing and Sreenath Bhasi who got into the skin of the medical professional Dr. Abid, effortlessly.

Virus will make you proud, firstly for the courage, we displayed to stand together and fight such a deadly outbreak from identification to its total annihilation and second for the amount of talent which shines through in all aspects of this film, making it a milestone in the history of Malayalam Cinema.

While I write this review or while you are watching the movie, Kerala is on the battleground once again having a face to face with the deadly virus. But just like what the movie conveys, we have won the battle once, we will fight it again, together.

Spread knowledge, not fear.

#Fear #Fight #Survival #Virus

                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Picture Courtesy: IMDb, Firstpost, Youtube