I usually hear this from my mom and others -let’s say ‘not so young guys’- what’s there in that movie to remember? A few days back, I was surprised to hear from my younger cousin – better to watch movies from 90s. A time when Mollywood had premeditated movies with a superstar, a beautiful heroine, a binding family, their issues, moral preaching, hitmen dupes, predicted ending - happily or tragic. They were engaging stories with a typical structure and safe landing. Many superstars were born and the existing ones retained their halo reigning the times. This movie culture stayed back longer and some are still stuck there. So, the recent Malayalam movie – Thallumala (chain of flights) faced severe criticism from the viewers. Though totally made for a social media reel audience, a big chunk from there too found it disinteresting.

Mollywood has changed its patterns in storytelling and overruled the myth of superstars’ power in creating huge hits since 2010. A crop of young directors and actors brought a new wave in filmmaking boldly unlocking the audience from the old ‘patterns’. Covid-induced OTT culture boosted such movies’ growth through Pan-India recognition and collection. Subtitles helped cross the language barriers. I think oldies in movie concepts need a shift in their thought process to accept new narration techniques. I seriously don’t want a return to decayed themes.

Mollywood’s new Mammootty is Tovino Thomas (in glamour). This handsome chap has a fair share of fan following after his commercial hits. I like Tovino’s attitude to experiment. Khalid Rahman, a new wave Malayalam director makes him Waseem, a hot-tempered guy from Ponnani – North Malabar, Kerala. Tovino is dashing in his flashy costumes and typical local accent throughout the film. Even his cute, tiny emotions were perfect on screen. Particularly the vibe he maintained with his friends. You hardly see him alone in this film. Or, you cannot imagine Waseem off his friends. I wouldn’t say Khaled was a total success in his non-linear narration. It definitely dropped in between. Most of the social media reviews were negative. Wondering how I found it interesting?!

TBC…