Bharatham (1991)

Lalettan won a National Award for his performance here, and rightly so. He hits all the right notes (pun intended) in every single scene, be it romancing Urvashi right behind her mother's back, or a man simultaneously very near the edge of grief but also drowning in it during the 'Raamakadha Gaanalayam' song. Incidentally, K.J. Yesudas too won a National Award for that song, and Raveendran received a Special Mention as the music composer for the film. They honestly should have also made a whole new category that year for the chemistry between Mohanlal and Nedumudi Venu- because if there's one reason to watch this movie, it's this. They both somehow become better actors when they're on screen together- as if their individual talents combine and become a force of their own, which sustains the narrative so beautifully. I love how effortless their dynamics seem always, no matter the genre of the movie, or the seriousness of the scene. It's just always brilliant.

I'm definitely falling more in love with Sibi Malayil's filmography the more I delve into it. Like I said in my review for His Highness Abdullah (1990), he has a knack for creating universes within his movies that invite you in so easily that for the next two hours or whatever, your attention is fully focussed on this world and the people inhabiting it. I loved how here too, the characters were sketched so well, and each one added a new complexity, a new perspective to not just the movie, but the events preceding the movie. It gave me a lot to think about- the responsibility of being an artist, the suffocation of being successful, the disillusionment when you realise that your heroes are humans too; about the other-worldliness of music, its healing power; and mostly, about love, and how it is love that not just binds us, but also frees us. Clichéd, I know, but that really is the thing that stayed with me after I was done. And the image of Urvashi looking at Mohanlal, trying to comfort him with her gaze as her heart was breaking as well. 

Sorry if I was incoherent, I've just been watching too many good movies these days, whose effects on me I can't properly articulate. At least not on the first watch. I hope this streak doesn't end soon, I am still not over how bad Farishtay (1991) was. I swear, that movie doesn't make me want to vomit, it makes me taste vomit in my mouth. Bit of a weird ending to this "review", but I am just happy for myself for watching good movies for a change, that actually add something to my life. Maybe I will warm up to Malayalam cinema after all. 

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