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'Prajapathy' Lacklustre

By P. Sreekumaran
Film critic, ApunKaChoice.Com

Is Malayalam Megastar Mammootty losing his Midas Touch? This question must be uppermost in the minds of innumerable Mammootty fans right now. For, his latest film ‘Prajapathy’ is not exactly setting the box office on fire. The downward trend perhaps started with Thuruppu Gulan . True, the movie was not a flop. But it was not the runaway success it was trotted out to be.

One hopes the Megastar sees the signals and apply the correctives immediately. Otherwise, doing movies like ‘Prajapathy’ will only prove counterproductive. Interestingly, his megastar rival Mohanlal seems to have learnt the lessons. That much is clear from the selection of films by him, of late.

‘Prajapathy’

is like lukewarm tea. It leaves you cold. One expected better from a director of Ranjith's stature and calibre. Remember, the same director gave memorable films like ‘Nandanam’ and ‘Ravanaprabhu’.

It must be said, however, that in ‘Prajapathy’ Ranjith has slipped up badly. There are no directorial innovations, nor does Prajapathy have anything to write home about except excellent camera work by ‘Azhagappan’.

The dialogues are repetitive and so are some of the frames -- culled from Ranjith's earlier flicks. In short, the director seems to have lost his surety of touch in ‘Prajapathy’. No wonder, the filmgoers are lukewarm in their response.

In his effort to be different, Ranjith has borrowed liberally from the epic Mahabharata. So names like Kaliyar Madom and Devarmadom remind you of the Kauravas and Pandavas. Wily Kunhambu Nair (Nedumudi Venu) leads Kaliyar Madom. The scheming Nair is assisted by wife Indrani (Seema) and four sons, personifications of evil! The only exception is his daughter (Sandhya). The eldest son Giri (Siddique) is blemished with all the vices. And like Duryodhana of Mahabharata, he is jealous of his cousin Devarmadom Narayanan (Mammootty)

Of course, Narayanan, like Yudhishtira, is repository of all virtues. He is the monarch of the village Perumalpuram, where his word is the law. The entry of Ali Raghavan (Sreenivasan), the illegitimate son of Kunhambu Nair, alters the landscape completely. Narayanan promises to help Raghavan fulfill his mission : to be recognised by his father (Karna of Mahabharatha?)

The climax is all too predictable. Therefore, the movie fails to retain the sense of suspense and falls flat.

Mammootty manages to inject some energy and verve into his character. But then, you have seen it all in his earlier films. Heroine Aditi Rao sleepwalks through her role as a dancer in love with Mammootty. Sandhya looks confused and lost -- a reflection on the failure of the director to flesh out her character.

Even that versatile actor, Nedumudi Venu, struggles to rise above mediocrity. And you have seen Siddique as villain in so many films. So is the case with Thilakan who plays the friend, philosopher guide to the hero. What were Sai Kumar and Salim Kumar doing in the film?

If you are a lover of serious, good quality cinema, ‘Prajapathy’ is not for you. One earnestly hopes Mammootty chooses his films with a little more care. It is time he reverts to serious movies like Kazhcha and ‘Valsalyam’.

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