Ellam Sheriyakum

Ellam Sheriyakum, the new Asif Ali – Rajisha Vijayan film by Jibu Jacob, is a safe bet script that plays it for the gallery. The apolitical stand we see in the “political” movies in Malayalam cinema can also be seen here. With a foggy conflict and bumper sticker lines about party politics and family, the film engages on a superficial level.

Vineeth and Ancy are this couple who got married against the will of Ancy’s father, Chacko. Vineeth is an active worker of the left-wing party LPF. Chacko is a prominent politician who represents UPF. He had to give up on his dream to be the CM because Ancy decided to elope with Vineeth when his party won the election. What forced Ancy to do that to her father and the repercussions of that in the life of Ancy and Vineeth is what we see in the movie.

Sharis Mohammed, who has written the film, is not that bothered about the backdrop of the characters. This is a story that you can place in a different setting as well. The merging of the politics into this story is somewhat smooth. But there are phases in the script where they shift the film entirely to capitalize on the left sentiment of the Kerala population. At its core, it is that classic story of the girl who ran away with her loved one and then got accepted by her angry father when he realized that she was pregnant. Jibu Jacob and Sharis Mohammed tried to add Kerala politics into their backdrop to create that typical entertainment.

Asif Ali gets to play two shades of the character Vineeth. One is your typical comrade who is not afraid of anyone, and the second one can’t face any problem. He shifts from Kettyolanu Ente Malakha style to the BTech zone for that transition. Rajisha Vijayan as Ancy has that fluidity in terms of body language. But at times, she sticks to the written dialogues too much, and the dialogue delivery feels a bit odd. Siddique, as usual, gets to play this hefty emotional bad guy. Here he is the heroine’s father and delivers a very convincing performance as the possessive father and the power-seeking politician.

Jibu Jacob treats the film similarly to the way he pulled off Vellimoonga. But the major highlight of the Biju Menon starrer was the plot with some unique characters and character equations. Here, the script is a bit weak on that aspect. Even the back story that had Balu Varghese in a vital role felt like a familiar tale. Sometimes the writing is a bit confused about whether to focus on the two versions of Vineeth or the equation between the father and daughter. I found the placement of the songs a bit out of place.

The “How a good politician should be?” lecture of the movie Ellam Sheriyakum is an ideology that had a significant role in creating an apolitical society. I could see people clapping for that ideology and the typical left glorification we see in Malayalam cinema. And it is kind of sad to see people falling for peripheral exploration. Ellam Sheriyakum is a passable entertainer with discrete moments of humor and sentiments.