The last time I had such strong emotion towards a movie was, while watching Puzhu, a spectacular movie which I recommend you
to watch if you haven’t already on SonyLiv.
My friends who are from outside Kerala usually presume
the state to be, devoid of all the social evils like, dowry, casteism,
religious divide and so on, based on the assumptions that literacy eradicates all
of it. Being born and raised in a rural part of the state, I have first-hand witnessed
caste based discrimination induced by several people I know. As a child with no
agency, all I could do was wonder why I was prohibited from playing with some
kids or going to or eating from some houses. The more years went by, I realized
how strong and evil the system of caste is, in the community despite social
classes. While Puzhu showcased the caste differentiation in an upper middle
class to affluent community, Malayankunju shows us that things are not
different in any social class.
Malayankunju is indeed a well created survival thriller, but it is the first half which in detail portrays the caste based everyday discrimination which are so entrenched into our psyche, that I hope people take time to think about. It is also the same issue that I have some gripe with towards the movie too. Fahadh Faasil with his brilliant performance will pull us into the life of Anikuttan while Maheshnayaranan’s cinematography substantiates with a detailed setting of the village in Idukki, the story is set in. This is indeed FaFa’s show, where that man’s silence and eyes will tell you more than any medium can convey. The rest of the cast has done the best they could do with the limited space they have been given. Jaya Kurup, who portrayed the role of Fahadh’s mother in the movie stands out, as a mother who is empathetic but doesn’t hesitate to establish her stand in every possible ways she can, within the limited agency she got.
I had three major issues with the movie, two related to the character portrayal and one to even my disbelief with the music. Although before I dive into it, let me remind you that these points are not reasons to not watch the movie. Malayankunju is definitely a movie which deserves your attention and is a visual treat which I hope, will make you look into yourself too.
People who have witnessed caste based oppression and people obviously, who got oppressed knows that, it doesn’t happen overnight. The mentality is years of conditioning, within family to society, which is also clearly portrayed in many scenes of the movie. The way Fahadh ’s character subtly yet most cruelly ensures he doesn’t even come in contact with stuff touched by people from another caste, is brilliant yet haunting and more disturbingly, absolutely real. While conditioning could be blamed for such mentality, it cannot be justified at any cost. Nothing, I mean nothing, can justify a human having hatred towards another person just because they belong to a different caste.
The subplot with Fahadh’s sister played by Rajisha Vijayan and his father played by Jaffer Idukki, may be unintentionally but is portrayed in a way that it kind of created a severe trauma to Anikuttan which inadvertently resulted in his hatred. Which would have been true, if his hatred was only towards his sister and her new family but Anikuttan discriminates people from any castes who are “socially considered below his own”. Although his mother is shown to be understanding of the daughter’s decision, but the portrayal of Fahadh being haunted by the traumatic recollection of the events almost in lines of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) felt like establishing a justification to his actions which becomes an antithesis to what the writer was trying to establish till then. Secondly just like conditioning happens over years, the unlearning also takes years. Way the film tried to wrap up the change in mentality with almost one dialogue felt hurried and lacked emotional gravity. Yes, medical emergencies and natural disasters have time and again changed some of the cruelest of people to realize how frivolous their viewpoints are but a complete transformation won’t happen overnight.
Coming to the third issue, I mean, I am a die-hard fan
of AR Rahman and some of the scenes in the movie are highly complimented by his
amazing background music yet there are portions where I felt the music was
mildly hindering the experience. I cannot believe I am saying this but there
were some portions in the movie where I wish they preferred silence or natural
sounds, instead of the intrusive OST. It made the scenes tad bit dramatic and
slightly annoyed the natural setting of things that was built up till then.
Also as the team of the movie mentioned, people with
claustrophobia will find the second half to be very disturbing, yet ironically
as Fahadh mentioned we will be the ones who will be able to relate to the desperation
better than anyone. With mild claustrophobia as a side effect of PTSD, it was
extremely difficult to sit through the second half although being prepared for
it helped a bit. Yet if you have severe claustrophobia I would suggest you to
skip the movie at least in the theater. Although the effort put in for the film
cannot be justified on an OTT platform, if you are determined to watch the
movie, a smaller screen at the comfort of your home might be less distressing.
As I mentioned before these are points which I want you to think about, and are not major issues which will disconnect you from the viewer experience. Director Sajimon Prabhakar deserves all the praises for attempting such a layered story for his debut creation along with Mahesh Narayanan for his writing and Fahadh Faasil for his excellent performance and backing up the project.
Lastly like Puzhu, I hope movies such as Malayankunju
provokes us to look into the biases, subtle and explicit, deeply conditioned
into our thought processes. May it not take a catastrophic event, for us to realize
that, there is no pride to be taken for something you are born into and that it
definitely doesn’t entitle us to discriminate others.
You can watch Malayankunju at a theater near you. Remember to wear a mask and stay safe.
P.S. This film plunges into tight spaces and confined environments that may induce feelings of claustrophobia in sensitive viewers. While the film's narrative may captivate, its atmospheric intensity could prove challenging for those prone to claustrophobic reactions and are advised to exercise caution while watching, as it may induce discomfort or anxiety.
