Conversation with a Saint: Bullet Point Report

• “Pranchiyettan …” is, I believe, director Ranjit giving the finger to those who had labeled him a “Hinduvta” director after a series of movies such as Devasuram, Ravanaprabhu, Nandanam, Prajapathy etc.


• There have been several movies based on the Kottayam Christian milieu; however movies set in Thrissur are rare. Other than Padmarajan’s Thoovanathumbikal, I can remember no other movie that has used the town and its slang as an important facet in the movie.


• It is refreshing that the movie has no “villains”. Siddhique is portrayed as Pranchi’s main rival, but Ranjit has resisted the temptation of having either the hero or villain import a dozen ruffians from several different places, and indulge in an outlandish fight sequence.


• The whole bit about hints around the hypocritical lives lead by Siddhique and Khushboo was uncalled for – a cheap shot, really. Could Pranchi not find his happiness even as his childhood sweetheart and her husband lived happily too?


• The whole speech sequence was awesome. It reminded me a bit of the iconic “balatkaar” sequence from “3 Idiots”; but the one in “Pranchiyettan…” was more about the fear of public speaking.


• The whole concept of “Padmashree-chasing” was a riot. Ranjit clearly has a ball here, with digs at all and sundry.


• Jagathy could have been avoided. He added absolutely nothing to the movie, and did nothing new (other than demonstrate a few Yoga poses) either.


• Finally, what does one say of Mammootty? This amazing performance is most un-Mammootty-like; in fact it is almost Mohanlal-esque, except for the spotless Thrissur slang (which I think Mohanlal could not have quite managed). We all know that Mammootty excels in statuesque roles, but to see him excel as the self-deprecating Pranchi reminds us that the veteran still has unexplored depths. More innovative scripts please!

More Sequels – Malayalam Cinema

The dearth of interesting story lines in Malayalam cinema continues. As a result, there are more sequels being planned in Mollywood:

Pranchiyettan vs. Manickyam: Mammootty in an exciting double role re-enacting his memorable roles from the two blockbusters. A special wig has been ordered from Washington D.C.

Osama: Major Ravi exposes how the real Osama assassination went down in 2011. The focus of the story is Brigadier Mahadevan (Mohanlal), who had personally assisted the US SEAL team in bringing down the fugitive, but ended up losing credit in the end.

CBI Umpteen: K.Madhu, S.N.Swamy, and Mammootty reunite to reprise Sethurama Iyer, one of the most memorable characters of Malayalam cinema.

Indhuchoodan: Amal Neerad brings back the iconic Indhuchoodan. Alphonse is doing a re-mixed version of the Narasimham theme music that is being rendered by Jassie Gift.

Ormayundo Ee Mukham: Suresh Gopi is back as Bharatchandran I.P.S, the character that elevated his career. Renji Panicker directs, and promises a thriller that reflects the latest political happenings in Kerala.

Rajavinte Makan: Shaji Kailas remakes this Mohanlal classic with Prithviraj in the lead.

20-80: Prithviraj Sukumaran stars and produces the sequel to 20-20, and re-unites the entire Malayalam film industry. Dileep will appear in a special item number sung by Aditya Narayan as an additional attraction. The great-grandfather of Malayalam cinema, Mr. Joshiiee, will be directing the sequel as well.