Release date:
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December 1, 2017
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Director:
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Domin D’Silva
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Cast:
Language:
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Neeraj Madhav, Reeba Monica John, Sudhi Koppa, Sarath Kumar, Dharmajan
Bolgatty, Aju Varghese, Rishi Kumar, Thesni Khan, Indrans
Malayalam
|
There has been what readers of
Western literature might consider a Gabriel Garcia Marquez-ness to the titles
of many films rolling out of Mollywood over the years. The latest poetic
moniker is debutant director Domin D’Silva’s Paipin Chuvattile Pranayam,
Love by the (Water) Pipes, a story of romance blossoming in a seemingly
impossible socio-economic situation.
Paipin Chuvattile Pranayam is set
on Pandarathuruthu,
which is facing a severe water shortage despite being surrounded by a kaayal on all sides. The polluted lake
water is unfit for drinking. This one factor pervades every aspect of the local
populace’s life, with fights at the community tap a common occurrence, parents
seeing marriage as an escape from this hellhole for their daughters and
families from elsewhere averse to marital alliances with the men of this
village.
Pandarathuruthu lies a universe
away from the city just on the other side of the lake. It is the sort of place
media bosses and politicians ignore. In this dismal scenario, we meet
Govindankutty / Govutty (Neeraj Madhav), a hard-working and resourceful young
fellow who earns a living from freelance painting jobs, fishing and assignments
for his dance troupe comprising local youth.
Govutty and Teena (Reeba Monica John) are in love, but
her parents are opposed to the relationship. Paipin Chuvattile Pranayam is about love surviving overwhelming odds,
laughter thriving in a forbidding setting, the human capacity for optimism even
when tragedy strikes, and the water wars we should be prepared for if we do not
heed glaring warning signs.
Environmental degradation is a
depressing subject, yet somehow, without trivialising the issues at hand,
D’Silva manages to give his film a consistently light touch. By foregrounding
Govutty’s relationship with his buddies and his romance with Teena, the
writer-director cleverly ensures that this remains a relatable even if
educative human story rather than an esoteric documentary.
Complementing his intelligent
screenplay (co-written with Antony Jibin) is a sturdy cast, an atmospheric
soundtrack and thoughtful cinematography.
Neeraj Madhav, for whom Paipin
is his first screen outing as the solo male lead, justifies the
director’s confidence in him. He carries the film on his able shoulders from
start to finish without flinching for a moment. He is a proficient actor, a
sweet-looking man and a good dancer.
In fact, it was clever of the
screenplay to assign dancing as a talent to Govutty, since this gives the film
the opportunity to tap Madhav’s natural skills and makes an important plot
point (involving a citizens’ protest) believable. When Govutty’s group gets a
high-profile platform in the state, choreographer Sreejith Dancity gives them
impressive moves with just enough rough edges to make them credible as coming
from a team lacking exposure and professional training.
Since Paipin Chuvattile Pranayam
exists on a male-dominated planet – as does most Malayalam cinema, including
many otherwise lovely films where scene after scene passes by without a woman
in sight – Teena is not given much to do apart from just being there. Despite
this, Reeba Monica John makes an
impression with whatever little the limited characterisation allows her to do.
(For the record, she is a stunner.)
This is not about giving
characters screen time alone. It is about writing them with depth. Govutty’s
feisty grandmother, for instance, is not visible as often as Teena, yet she is
well fleshed out (and well acted) and memorable because of that.
To be fair to D’Silva, this folly
in the script cannot be blamed on the male gaze alone. Govutty’s friend Ayyappa
is a wholesome character – excellently acted by Sudhi Koppa – but Rishi Kumar’s
character has recall value for the actor’s voluminous Afro hairstyle and
nothing else, and the younger boy pals for not even that. One thing that can
certainly be blamed on the male gaze though is the sexualisation of the little
girl who is followed around and gaped at by those boys, and is shown enjoying
the attention. She looks like she could be a pre-teen, they are not much older.
Even if such behaviour does exist in reality, please stop projecting it as
cute. It is not. Not only are these brief scenes an absolutely needless aside,
they are also disappointing considering that D’Silva & Co manage to portray
the Govutty-Teena relationship without a hint of stalking or leering – male
behaviour that is normalised in too many other Malayalam films.
Paipin Chuvattile Pranayam is technically refined. DoP Pavi
K. Pavan captures the beautiful locale in all its visual glory, yet his
matter-of-fact, un-self-conscious style ensures that the camerawork never
diverts our gaze from the people at the heart of this tale.
Bijibal has notched up yet
another winner with his music for Paipin Chuvattile Pranayam. Although his songs for Maheshinte Prathikaaram remain the jewel in his crown, this lot is
pretty neat too. In fact, the melodic title track – with remarkably
conversational lyrics by B.K. Harinarayanan – is a perfect précis of the plight
of Pandarathuruthu. Kaathu
Kaathittu and its instrumental arrangements are lots of fun. I am not so
fond of Kayalirambilu, but it fits
well into the film. These songs are not interruptions but serve to take the
narrative forward.
These are the reasons why the
journey up to the climax is so rewarding and insightful, and it is possible to
excuse the pat, simplistic and therefore implausible ending perhaps designed to
make the film more viable at the box-office than if the climax had been
open-ended or ugly. Paipin Chuvattile Pranayam is a
sweetly sad film that transports the viewer to its world and provides a
convincing portrait of the social milieu it inhabits. It also adds Domin
D’Silva’s name to the list featuring the likes of Dileesh Pothan, Althaf Salim
and Lijo Jose Pellissery who are redefining commercial Malayalam cinema.
Rating
(out of five stars): **3/4
CBFC Rating (India):
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U
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Running time:
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134 minutes
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This
review has also been published on Firstpost:
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