Mohanlal to do Priyan's Hindi film

Malayalam superster Mohanlal is ready to act in Priyadarshan's new Hindi film. Priyadarshan is one of the hit directors in Bollywood and is a close friend of Mohanlal. This combo had produced a series of hit films in Malayalam, like Chitram, Kilukkam, Thenmavin Kombathu, Boeing Boeing, Akkare Akkare Akkare etc. Now Priyan is planning to work with Mohanlal in a Hindi film. Mohanlal had acted in Hindi films earlier in RGV's Aag and Company.

"But I'll do Priyan's film. It's a 12-13 day film. It isn't a conventional Hindi film. It has a message on AIDS. Priyan is returning to his roots. He recently did a fantastic Malayalam film called 'Kanjeevaram'. I was supposed to do it. But I couldn't. Now I'm looking forward to working with him and to doing a Hindi film."-said Mohanlal.

Boxoffice performance of offbeat films

Hey guys, offbeat films like Ore Kadal, Paradeshi, Karutha Pakshikal, Kayyoppu, Mizhikal Sakshi are good films and are critically acclaimed too. But they were not well appreciated in boxoffice. It is miserable to see such films removing from theatres two or three days after release. What is the main reason for that? Even some crap films swap the boxoffice but why can't such good films do magic in boxoffice? Inorder to save Malayalam film industry we must have to promote offbeat films.

The main problem I felt is that the people spreading negative rumours without even seeing the film. People say that 'the movie is good but not watchable, it is too slow and dragging'. Such comments would definitely discourage people from watching the film. If you are saying that the film is slow then there will be some people who feel reluctant to watch such movies. The fans must be waiting for entertainers, but the value of these offbeat films is much about these mass entertainers.

The marketing of those films should be encouraged. Further the authorities must promote art films, by reserving certain theatres for such films (like Sree Theatre). I am sure that if the above mentioned films was released some 10 years before, these must be sure hits. However, there are some people who never cares of negative labelling, until and unless they watch the movie, are real lovers of Malayalam cinema. We can see some excellent performance of the actors in these films, rather than mere entertainment.

Mohanlal's Thanmatra and Mammootty's Kazcha are exception to the above. These films can be called offbeat films, but they did well in boxoffice. This is a great encouraging factor. So let us do something to encourage such movies.

MAADAMBI - A Late Review

Maadambi is a B.Unnikrishnan film starring Bharath Mohanlal and Kavya Madhavan in lead roles. Other actors include Ajmal, Mallika, Innocent, Jagathy, Suraj, KPSC Lalitha, Saikumar etc. This was the second film of B.Unnikrishnan after Smart City which failed to click in boxoffice. Mohanlal is appearing as a moneylender Gopalakrishna Pilla in Maadambi. It was the first time that Kavya is pairing with Mohanlal.

As depicted in the caption 'a late review', I saw the film the very next day of release, from Jose Theatre, Thrissur (Later I saw the film from Melam, Shornur along with my old friends). A great crowd was in front of theatre, the queue extending to Swaraj Round. Eventhough I reached 1 hour before the show, I made sure that I would not get tickets. Fortunately, I saw my seniors of my college in front of the queue, and they arranged tickets for me.

Then about the movie, I liked the way the movie was presented. B.Unnikrishnan gets all the credit for that. He utilised the star value of Mohanlal to the core. The dialogues in the movie is another catching point. The songs are excellent especially the final song featuring his mother. The comedy sequences are also good, Suraj at his best. Innocent and Jagathy had done their roles nicely.

Ajmal was not at all impressive. He might have to learn much more to survive in this field. Mallika was ok but not great. Kavya had a short role, but Lal-Kavya combination lacks chemistry. First half was nice, but second half was little irritating (dont mean that it was too bad, i made a comparison with first half). The climax was not upto mark, as I expected something more. The story line of the film was good, but it shows some repetition of previous films like Balettan, Valsalyam etc. Speaking of story, it was an old wine in new bottle. I felt this film as a combination of Devasuram and Balettan.

Since all other releases during that season turned to be flops, Maadambi managed to have descent run in theatres, still running successfully. Maadambi can be considered as a clean family entertainer and it revived the career of Mohanlal after a series of flops. Yes, Maadambi was a real winner in boxoffice and it is expected to complete 100 days in boxoffice.

Verdict : Super Hit

Rating : 3/5

Veruthe Oru Bharya - A watchable movie

‘Veruthe Oru Bharya’ is a typical family movie directed by Akku Akbar starring Jayaram ang Gopika in lead roles. This film add to the list of few preachy films on matrimonial harmony. It also refered to as a comeback film of veteran actor Jayaram. The film seems to say that a wife is not an indentured labourer.

I saw the film from Ramdas Theatre, Thrissur. I got the tickets comfortably even though I reached there just before 5 minutes. I did not get tickets at balcony, so secured front seats at first class. There was pretty good crowd within the theatre, family audiences dominating. Perhaps this is a good sign for a good film.

The film focuses on lives of very few characters – Sugunan (Jayaram), an employee of electricity board, his wife Bindu (Gopika), and their teenage daughter Anjana (Nivedita). Innocent did the role of Bindu’s father. Saying about Sugunan’s character, he has conventional notions of what a wife is meant for and where her place is in the scheme of things. Bindu does not have time to visit her ailing mother, as she have to do her household works and also to deal with her daughter. Sugunan does not allow Bindu to visit her mother as he wanted his wife to stand one step behind the husband. The way it was picturised on Jayaram who imitates the singing and dancing style of all Malayalam stars right from Prem Nazir days, has contributed largely to its success.

After seeing women characters being reduced to the role of a mere extra in our superstar films, Gopika is a welcome relief as Bindu the long suffering wife.This struck a chord among the lady audiences, especially as there are lot of Sugunan's around in our day to day life.Jayaram was sporting enough to give equal screen space and dialogues to Gopika, which worked magic for the film.This film also reveals how the youth misuses mobile phones and internet.

The bottom line is that it was a refreshingly good entertainer that clicked with its target audiences. Veruthe Oru Bhariya proves that there is still hope for Malayalam films and the script is supreme.

Verdict : Super Hit

Rating : 3.5/5

Onam - No major releases

Traditionally, Onam is considered as one of the best season to release a Malayalam film. We can expect a lot of releases during onam and a great rush is seen in theatres due to holidays.For all top stars, an Onam release is not only prestigious but also a must for their survival in commercial cinema. However, 2008 made some difference. There is not even a single superstar film during onam holidays, which is really a disappointing news for Malayalees. Two or three films are set for release during Onam.

The main reason is that the Ramzan fast coincides with Onam, which may cause a parallel drop in collection figures, especially in Malabar. This made filmmakers to shift their release date to Ramzan, without taking a risk. Another fact is that record breaking films like Rajamanikyam, Classmates etc were released during Ramzan season. The astrologers too felt that Ramzan is the best time for the film relelases.

Jayaram's long delayed Paarthen Kanda Paralokam is now scheduled to come on September 5. Prithviraj starring Thirakatha which was primarily scheduled to release during onam was now shifted to October 9.However Mohanlal's offbeat film Akashagopuran, which released much before onam may continue in theatres during Onam.Jayaram's Veruthe Oru Bharya which is doing a descent run in boxoffice may be in contest during Onam. Mohanlal's superhit Madambi may still run in few release theatres during Onam which is looking ahead for a 100 day run. AMMA's multi starrer Twenty 20 will hit screen during October. Mohanlal-Major Ravi's high budget film Kurukshetra, Mammootty's Maya Bazzar and Suresh Gopi's Boss will hit the screens during Ramzan.