By Anju
Directors: Sudha Kongara, Gautham Menon, Rajiv Menon, Suhasini, Karthik Subbaraj
Cast: Jayaram, Urvasi, Kalidas Jayaram, Kalyani Priyadarshan, M S Bhaskar, Ritu Varma, Suhasini, Anu Haasan, Shruti Haasan, Andrea Jeremiah, Leela Samson, Sikkil Gurucharan, Bobby Simha, Sharath Ravi, Muthu Kumar
Language: Tamil
Platform: Amazon Prime
We are still in the middle of an unprecedented time of our lives with the pandemic wreaking havoc all over the world. As film industries are gradually getting back to work, lockdown stories are seeming to become the new normal. Well known Tamil directors – Sudha Kongara, Rajiv Menon, Goutham Menon, Suhasini and Karthik Subbaraj together have come up with five short lockdown stories to collaborate on a Tamil anthology film – Putham Pudhu Kaalai, a feel good, breezy film spreading positivity and hope in given circumstances.
Sudha Kongara’s Ilamai Idho Idho, also Youth Here We Come, is rediscovering love in later stages of life. Jayaram as Rajiv, a widower and Urvasi as Lakshmi, a widow, plan to reignite their love of many years. This segment has the most unique narrative which is the juxtaposition of the characters’ younger selves – Kalidas Jayaram and Kalyani Priyadarshan, happily and naughtily dancing over noodles and wine. The plan of clandestinely spending time together for a couple of days, with the pretext of attending a yoga retreat, is further extended by twenty one day lockdown imposition by the Prime Minister. Both are rattled with each other’s pet peeves – childlike Rajiv’s keeping of cutlery with spoon in the fridge and impish Lakshmi’s dropping of wet towel on the bed. Their fear of their respective children getting to know of their relationship is overcome with a bold decision they arrive at, in the last scene.
Goutham Menon’s Avarum Naanum – Avalum Naanum, is mending broken relationships. Ritu Verma, an IT professional, comes to her estranged maternal grandfather, M S Bhaskar’s house, to take care of him during lockdown. She’s affectionately called Kanna by him, her Thaatha who was a nuclear physicist. She juggles with some router issues to work at home while her Thaatha providing support to her indulges in fun when she is taking office meetings. The point to dig from the past comes where they have mutual complaints – she about him abandoning her mom and family and he about his daughter marrying against his wishes and sacrificing her voice, who had once been an accomplished musician. Talking over it, they bury the hatchet, in an emotional scene with a remarkable performance from Bhaskar. Towards the end, we are treated with mellifluous singing by Bombay Jayashree. Kanna takes leave of Thaatha with renewed promises as the lockdown ends.
In Suhasini’s Coffee Anyone? , the three real life Haasan sisters bond over bedridden matriarch who’s in coma. Valli (Suhasini) flies in from U.K. to be there for her mother Soundara (her own mother, Komalam)’s 75th birthday. Saras(Anu) is already there but Ramya (Shruti) is missing as she is in Mumbai busy with her music. They grouse about their father (Kathadi Ramamurthy) not admitting their mother in hospital and for being adamant of taking care of her at home. Soundara slowly starts showing signs of improvement and coming out of coma. The segment ends with Soundara completely recovered sipping coffee, the daughters shocked and joyous over it, everyone delighted, joining one another.
Rajiv Menon’s Reunion addresses the topic of drug addiction and coming clean of it. Guitarist chic, Sadhana (Andrea) coincidentally lands at her schoolmate Vikram (Gurucharan)’s house when her bike breaks down. Third generation doctor, Vikram, lives with his mother Bhairavi (Leela Samson). What should have been a drop by for Sadhana turns into a longer stay with the announcement of lockdown, which is spent over some music and cooking. This is the time where they discover Sadhana’s substance abuse, later her getting over it – Andrea goes a tad overboard in the depiction and it feels unreal at times. The segment leaves us with both of them revealing their secret mutual crushes since school days.
Karthik Subbaraj’s Miracle gives an enlightening message of power of miracles. A Nithayananda like Guruji (Ezhil Arasan Babaraj) preaches “miracle will happen today” on a channel. A dejected filmmaker Michael (Muthukumar) watches this. So do two jobless thugs Devan (Bobby Simha) and Rocky (Sharath Ravi). For want of such miracle, Devan and Rocky plot to lay their hands on heavy cash. The segment is set in a true Karthik Subbaraj’s world. Inspired by a true incident, the narrative is woven around it, by them venturing out at the middle of the night, stealing tyre out of an abandoned car in an open ground, things ensue. This tyre becomes the object of mishmash, is unraveled by a really “miraculous” ending with a twist.
Some stories score more over the others in appeal. Nonetheless, All five filmmakers have creatively tried to tell stories in whatever constraints the lockdown has posed, though I felt it wasn’t full fledged filmmaking. The homes at which the first four segments are shot are beautiful, where traditional aesthetics blend with contemporariness. The stories are enhanced by G V Prakash Kumar and Govind Vasantha’s peppy musical numbers. The title track sung by G V Prakash Kumar has an anthem-like punch. Typical to the movie title, this new type of filmmaking will be here to stay for sometime.
Stars: ***.5
My thoughts 