However what is sad is that a number of people try to find the bad points of the movie – Shouting from roof-tops about the love-making scene of the movie and how Blessy had wrongly lead us to believe that Alzheimers could turn an adult into a child and then to death so soon. Thankfully this group is a tiny minority and the vast majority of people have hailed Thanmaathra as a classic and rightly so – the simple reason being that they had not seen a movie that was abundant with scenes picked from their daily lives – Just to give an example: The scene where Rameshan Nair’s daughter watches Jurassic Park so intently and is terrified when the Dinosaur roars – a lot of us would felt a sense of deja vu. I mean – who amongst us would not have experienced something similar in our lives ?

A group of people compare it to Padmarajan movies and argue that Thanmaathra does not possess the quality of a Padmarajan movie. Ironically, the story itself is inspired from “Orma”- a short story which he had penned some years back . So there IS a bit of Padmarajan in this movie and besides he was Blessy’s mentor also. And if Padmarajan were alive today, he would have been proud of his protege’s product.

and this movie seemed to have gotten all of them rite..

potrayal of all situations have been done with highest level of reality..

intensity stands out thru out the film…

movies like these atleast show that normal ppl exsist on earth!!!!!

We live in mad times, when people are, like the factory workers in Charlie Chaplin’s Modern Times, driven like sheep and have no time for rest, silent or quiet reflection. Therefore most of us are in stress and to escape this, we get addicted to various things – not only to alcohol and stuff but also to various kinds of loud and crude stimulation that assault our different senses. Masala movies are a reflection of our needs to submerge ourselves and our stresses in riotous sensations.

Because we live in such mad times buried in various addictions, what is artistic and refined do not achieve a great deal of instant popularity. Drug addicts will not be able to enjoy the music of Mozart or Thyagaraja. Blessy’s movies don’t become outright hits in the beginning. But they have their healing effect on our minds and slowly people begin to be sensitive to their refined tunes and subtle nuances. Material success comes easily to those who dish out addictions. Look at how the abkaris make money! So do the producers of the bollywood masala and pornographic kings of California. But people can be de-addicted and be made more sensitive by exposing themselves to beauty and art — this is what we learn from Thanmatra.

A sensitive portrayal of tragedy (whether scripted by Blessy or Shakespeare) will increase the depth of human feelings and will actually make us appreciate and enjoy life more fully. If you shy away from the great tragedies of literature and cinema, I am afraid your depth of emotional experience could become shallow and restricted. No one can escape from tragedies in life. Blessy focuses not on the suffering caused by Alzheimer’s disease to the victim or to his family, but on the power of love to hold society together in times of difficulty. Over all, one leaves the movie hall with a lump in the throat and a moist eye, but shaken and tremendously exhilarated by the beauty of love that is the subject of both his movies.
Good movies, as is the case with great literature, have educational value – especially the serious and tragic ones. These are the kind of movies that nurture love and make the world a better place to live in.
Carry on, Blessy.