Thinkalazhcha Nishchayam Review : Thinkalazhcha Nishchayam

Story: Suja, a young woman from Kanhangad, is all set to be engaged to Lakshmikanthan, who works abroad. But, she doesn’t want to marry him and is trying various ways and means to escape it. Preparations are full-on, for her engagement function on Monday, as Suja silently ponders on escape routes. What then?


Review: It’s very rarely that one gets to hear out-and-out Kanhangad-style Malayalam in a mainstream Mollywood movie, except for probably a few caricature representations. It can probably be because of the thought that audience in general might find it difficult to fully follow the dialect. However, Director Senna Hegde’s State Award winner film Thinkalazhcha Nishchayam serves a delicious feast of a story, set in the rustic Kanhangad, and it still doesn’t puzzle the viewer too much and stays true to the regional roots.

As Suja’s (Anagha) elder sister Surabhi (Unnimaya Nalappadam) married a man of her choice against their dad Vijayan’s (Manoj KU) wishes, Vijayan is determined to mend his marred ‘reputation’ by quickly marrying off Suja to an NRI. But, Suja is in no mood to take it, lying down. As their relatives and others, many of them scheming inside but charming outside, arrive to attend the function and the house gets ready for the engagement, Suja is looking for ways to chart her ‘flight’ towards freedom with a man of her choice.

The eagerness with which the movie embraces its source material and setting is so refreshingly original. While stories on elopement are nothing new in Mollywood, what makes Senna’s film stand-out is also the interesting presentation of the ordinary pains, characters, their circumstances and thoughts, by the fresh-out-of-the-oven cast.

And so, despite the familiarity of the trope, the story doesn’t feel dated. It artfully progresses presenting the most regular aspects of a lower middle-class family, keeping all the elements – be it anger, humour or romance – intact. The film soaks in the charm of its simple setting, without anything getting glossed over.

And into this, the characters, portrayed mostly by fresh faces, blend in like salt and spices. But, in no time, they register their performance in the viewers minds. Manoj K U, who plays the head of the family is one of the actors who impresses the most. From a romantic husband to a mad man breaking chairs, he gets to play a wide range of emotions and he nails each of them effectively. The various deeper layers of social interactions, presented with scenes involving the bitter-gourd fry, the conversations on monarchy and democracy, the nightie and more are also quite thought-provoking. The film’s songs are also instant earworms, be it the romantic melodies or its fast numbers.

The film runs in a slow pace and that has fattened its length, which might at times make the viewer restless. But though the proceedings get occasionally dull, the performances and story compensate soon after, which makes the film an overall joyful watch.