So Thinkalazhcha Nishchayam’s title card screams, pouring pride in the place. Where the film is improved and allowing viewers to expect something new. A one-line main story can generate little interest.
Over the years, we have seen and heard many stories of women being forced. Into marriage against their will and finding ways to get out of marriage proposals. But the way you tell a story and what you leave to the characters.
It can make all the difference that director Sena Hegde achieves here.
Suja (Anaga Narayanan), the protagonist of Thinkalazhcha. Who is forced to marry an NRI also carries an additional burden. His father, Vijayan (Manoj KU), is still living with the “embarrassment” of his eldest daughter Surabhi (Unnimaya Nalapadam), who married the woman of his choice, and rejects the proposal of a cousin who is also in a better economic situation. So Vijayan casts all his hopes on Suja to redeem himself between the cursed extended family and the larger society. But Sudja had other plans.
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The hilarious scene of “Pennu Kaanal” with a deaf person from NRI becomes the backdrop for the rest of the film, full of moments like this. All of his intentional comments on his prepared list of questions that should have frightened him only backfired.
The engagement was kind and sincere and would come as soon as the man returned to work overseas. Sudja’s time is running out, and her boyfriend is missing.
Director Hegde brings certain originality and authenticity to the onscreen production, which is not only due to the setting and the Kasargod dialect (which is rarely shown in Malayalam cinema).
He seems to have the ability to write scenes that highlight the relationship dynamics and the central tension between each character. This is evident in the scenes following the arrival of various groups of relatives. In the household before the engagement. Especially in the way Surabhi’s cousin (played by Sajin Cherukail) tries to win her father’s heart despite openly hating her husband.
While most of the film revolves around a woman who fights to defend her election.
It also remains evident from her father, who sometimes acts like an autocrat in the family. Even while humbly running away from someone who has borrowed whether he has money. . Most of the players were fresh. Still, most of them presented themselves as seasoned veterans.
Director Sena Hegde has invested a lot of energy and original thought. In every frame and offers a new perspective on the famous premise. Thinkalazhcha Nishchayam, which means “Monday is engagement”. It is not the first film with a girl wanting to run away with her lover. But the clever text captures a subtle yet endless stream of humour in the mundane.
Which makes this film surprisingly engaging and refreshing.
Cameraman Sreeraj Raveendran’s footage is always alive with activity and, at the same time, gives us a more aesthetic insight into life in this country. Some scenes take place in the dark. While we feel anxious, the characters are perfectly comfortable in total darkness. The director wants us to experience their way of life.
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Thinkalazhcha Nishchayam is deeply rooted in the (traditional) way of life in Kerala. Slang, dense green around the house, eating habits, daily food, friendship, family politics, social politics and lifestyle. This is not a film about a father doing bad things in the name of his male pride. Instead, it is the story of a man who firmly believes in the principles of a patriarchal society but eventually begins to accept that times have changed and that he has no right to control the will and desires of his children.
More importantly, Thinkalazhcha Nishchayam does not have a famous face. Nevertheless, each actor presents an authentic and connected performance. It’s not that we are tired of actors’ excellent performances who are attracted to the new wave of Malayalam cinema. But it was refreshing to discover new and promising talent and enjoy a Malayalam film without Fahad Faasil, Suraj Wenjaramudu or Nimisha Sajayan.
