Randamoozham

After years of speculation, looks like novel Randamoozham is going to be made as a movie. We as fans of MT and Randamoozham cannot comprehend how topic that vast and canvas that big could be made into a movie. But we are sure that MT being MT will come up with a fitting screen version.

Bheema is all set for a new act. Nearly three decades after M.T. Vasudevan Nair’s masterpiece novel ‘Randamoozham’ (Second Turn), floored Malayalis, the Pandava warrior from the Mahabharata is eyeing the big screen.
M.T.’s celebrated novel is going to be made into a film by Hariharan. M.T. is working on the script, even as Hariharan is doing his own homework for what is perhaps the most ambitious project of the writer-director duo in their association of over 30 years.['Randamoozham' to make its screen debut]

The announcement about the movie has led to furious discussions and intense speculation about casting of this  movie in various film forums and webs sites and in public minds. As  we said earlier, being huge fans of this novel do not want nothing but the best set of actors to enact  the various characters of this novel. We are curious to know your take on who should do the following characters:

• Bheeman
• Draupadi
• Arjunan
• Yudhishtiran
• Vidurar
• Krishnan
• Kunti
• Karnan

Update (May 8th): If your comment has to be approved, you need to provide your suggestions for all the characters listed above. This is to make the “M” fans stretch their brains a bit. Earlier comments have not been deleted.

As the legend goes,  blue lotus blooms as a sign of god’s  answer to one’s prayers.  Movie lovers in Kerala been praying for good cinema for a while and we were hoping that Lal Jose’s Neelathamara would be the answer.  Reading the reviews we are not 100% sure about it as the opinion is divided. The story of a maid servant falling in love with the rich boy might have been new in the 70s, but it is no longer so. We had many variations of theme, among which Nandanam is our favorite.

So even though there is nothing new in the story for the viewer in 2009, what is unique is Lal Jose’s treatment, the new actors which the movie introduces, Vijay Ulakanathan’s camera work, and Vidyasagar’s melodious music[Read Neelathamara's music review by Vivek Ranjit here].

Nowrunning.com says:

Kailash is my pick of the lot, when it comes to the performers in the film. He is as much a hot blooded, charismatic and flirtatious youngster of the 70′s as one can be. Confident and remarkably talented, this young actor is one who would be around for a long time to come. Archana is every bit the demure, coy village girl and the innocent sweetheart. Samvrutha puts up a starkly moving performance that should count among the best that she has come up with till now in her career.

Lal Jose is the man when it comes to creating verse on screen. Beautifully shot, Neelathamara has been conceptualized with an effervescent artistry. Vijay Ulakanathan’s camera work is nothing short of brilliant. The three songs that have been set to tune by Vidyasagar are mind blowingly melodious to say the least.

Neelathamara does make an effort to wedge itself into today’s world. And I would grant it to Lal Jose and his team for having done the best with a theme that felt right three decades back.

Hindu offers some interesting tidbits:

Where the first ‘Neelathamara’ ends, the present one opens. The remake is actually the flashback. MT has woven a topical twist to his old script which jells well. Sreedevi Unni who dons the mother’s role stands out for her natural acting.

Archana Kavi has that vulnerable look and understated emotions that go well with rural girls. The male protagonist is played by Kailash. The smaller characters like the caretaker, the man under the banyan tree and the old servant leave an impression with the viewer.

Rainmaker’s review:

Lal Jose has done justice to the script written perhaps a bit too much as well. His handling of the sequences is true with the pace of the story. He has been able to extract creditable performances from the cast especially new comers. Cinematography is superb and one of the best reasons to watch the movie. Lighting is superbly done in night sequences. It looks poetic. Music is lilting with ‘Anuraga’ being one of the best melodies of the year. The Ghazal during the sad sequences is aesthetically shot. There is no injection of unwanted comedy, drama to increase the length. Its sharp as much as the script demands. 1 hour and 45 odd minutes.

Rediff.com comments:

The performance of newcomers Archana and Kailash comes very close to be called enchanting. Archana shows the class of a veteran displaying requisite vulnerability spontaneously. Her expressions and body language convey more than her dialogues. We just hope that this is just the beginning of a long innings. Kailash displays the haughtiness of the male of yesteryears who believes that he is a superior being. He may initially miss being a chocolate boy hero. But, he will surely come on his own as time goes by. Rima’s role as Ammini — Kunjimalu’s sounding board — is insignificant and not well chiselled as one would expect. Or was it truncated on the editor’s table?

All in all, Neelathamara, is lush film without a solid core.

IndiaGlitz gushes about it:

M T seems to be in his familiar terrain, with precise, crisp but powerful dialogues. Interlaced with themes of sensuality, infidelity and sincere romance, the director has created a visual marvel with the aid of cinematographer Vijay Ulaganath and art director Gokuldas. The flashback really gives the feel of ‘being there’, with its realistic settings and greenish tones. Recreation of the early eighties with minute detailing, from that cigarette packs to note books, tape recorders and newspapers is a definitely applaudable directorial stuff. Lal Jose and his regular crew once again displays why they are called as masters of mainstream Mollywood.

With a duration of just 110 minutes, ‘Neelathamara’ races steadily asking the viewers to want for more. Sticking to that impeccable styles of M T, with a little more directorial and technical finesse than some veterans who usually handle M T scripts and with loads of understated but impactful substories and strains, this is definitely a must watch for a serious movie lover. The coming weeks of the movie at the box office will prove, how far the current generation has equipped themselves to get on to the range that an M T script and visuals offer. Hat’s off to Lal Jose and his team to prove that young makers are still here to bring back the splendour of that eighties.

Image courtesy: rediff.com

We are familiar with the trend of Actors migrating to the lucrative world of cinema from stage. Recently. Mohanlal from his comfortable perch in commercial cinema made forays into theatre by acting in a Sanskrit play named Karnabharam, written and directed by Kavalam Narayana Panikker.

Mohanlal has taken time off his busy shooting schedule in Hyderabad for a fortnight-long rehearsal at Kavalam’s Sopanam Art of Performing Arts, Trivandrum. The actor is busy learning the basic steps under the tutelage of Kavalam and his experts. Mohanlal has already mastered the Sanskrit dialogues made available to him in cassette form.

Though Mohanlal thought Sanskrit would be beyond his grip, learning it did not pose any problem for him. “The language was very kind to me. I have been able to grasp the finer points of the rich language,” he said.

Both director and the actor are excited about the project. Kavalam said he was hopeful of exploiting the full potential in the actor, who has always shown the humility to learn more and work hard in his quest for excellence. He said that the work that Mohanlal put in to learn Kathakali and Kalaripayattu for his previous films would come in good stead for Karnabharam.[Mohanlal's new Obsession]

Mohanlal followed it up with another stage drama – Chayamukhi.

The Malayalam play, ‘Chayamukhi,’ which features actors Mohanlal and Mukesh, will be staged by Kalyan Silks at the Lulu International Convention Centre here on March 12.

Addressing a press conference here on Tuesday, Mr. Mohanlal described the play as a ‘labour of love.’

“The stage has always attracted me. I wanted to associate with a stage production after I did Kavalam Narayana Panicker’s ‘Karnabharam.’ I found ‘Chayamukhi,’ written by Prasanth Narayanan, interesting and decided to act in it.,” he said.[Chayamukhi to boost theatre]

Mammootty was not far behind. Recently he acted in the stage adaptation of Randamoozham.

The show titled ”Bhemman” was organized by Malayala Manorama, where the actor displayed his ease in stage acting too, in the roles of Bheema, Arjuna, Karna and Yudhishtira. Directed by T K Rajeev Kumar and Pramod Payyanoor, the show also had multimedia projections and backdrops with eight screens via four projectors working in tandem. The deep voice and intense performance of Mammooty supported by 13 other actors in lesser roles definitely moved its creator M T vasudevan Nair deeply. The veteran who discovered the star in Mammooty in the seventies, congratulated the actor for his mesmerizing performance and blessed all his future endeavors.

Mamootty who saluted MT for infusing meaning to every pregnant silence of Mahabharatha through the master work ”Randaamoozham”, was more than happy for his mentor’s whole hearted blessings. Mammootty later said that the offering was a gurudhakshina  for M T , who made him read  serious literature in his childhood. He also stated that MT was a writer who wrote very strong characters for his screen performances.[Mammootty plays Bheeman, charms audience]

If there is a piece of literature we fervently wanted to see on silver screen, it was MT’s Randamoozham. Over the years, we had heard rumors about that novel being made into a movie, but they remained rumours. Probably the logistical challenges and huge budget involved deterred producers from financing it. It could also be that producers were worried about that MT’s exploitation of silences in Mahabharatha may not find success unlike the case of Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha where MT exploited the pregnant pauses. Randamoozham would have been an ideal choice for AMMA, to be made as a movie, to leave an indelible mark in cinematic history, instead of circus vaudeville act known as Twenty-20. But there is limit to what to expect from Dileep-Uday-Sibi team.

We need a revival of theater. These two gentlemen, maybe inadvertently helping that cause. Theater can adopt classics without the expense of cinema as exemplified in the cases above . Also it would give good competition to the current crap being dished out in Malayalam cinema.  With these worthies involved, theater can withstand competition from TV. Isn’t these the stuff Utopian dreams are made of?

Photo courtesy sify.com