There is a formula one can sense in both the scripts by Vishnu Unnikrishnan and Bibin George. The new Dulquer Salmaan movie Oru Yamandan Premakadha scripted by the duo is no different from that formula of soaking a very basic story in humor. But what is good about that formula is that it still doesn’t have a repetitive feel to it. With the ingredients not getting overused and the humor keeping things alive for its entire runtime, Oru Yamandan Premakadha is for those who enjoyed the writer duo’s last two outings.
So Lallu is a painter; the guy who comes to paint your house. He is from a reputed family and his father is not a big fan of his career choice. His younger brother is a techie in Bangalore and he is also against Lallu’s profession as it caused problems in his relationship with his girlfriend. So at one point, Lallu’s marriage becomes the main agenda and Lallu’s gang Teni, Panchi and Vicky are on a mission to make their friend fall in love with a girl. The things that happen in this journey are what we are seeing in Oru Yamandan Premakadha.
Like I said in the beginning, it is pretty much in the zone of films that Vishnu and Bibin have written previously. I think these two can be called as the modern day’s Udayakrishna and Sibi K Thomas as they know how to embed humor and make it engaging even when the story is an exaggerated fantasy. There is a scene where a blind Teny talks about the problems in his life and Vishnu and Bibin knows how the melodrama can ruin the scene and they quickly shift the tone by adding lines that kind of trolls the bad singing ability of Teni. There are so many moments in the movie where you will feel that “Oh this is so cheesy/cliché”, and then the scene will get a humorous tweak and you will find yourself laughing. The template nature of things that makes it predictable is perhaps the major negative here. And if you are someone who has knowledge about who the writers are, you won’t be feeling any sort of major let down because of that.
Dulquer Salmaan as a middle-class painting guy is something that is hard to imagine and after that initial monologue which made me doubt whether he will be able to carry Lallu on his shoulders, the actor kind of got in sync with the character and tone of comedy. Oru Yamandan Premakadha is not a movie that Dulquer can show as a testament for his ability to carry comedy as the humor part is largely handled by others. Vishnu Unnikrishnan is hilarious and endearing as the visually challenged Teny. Salim Kumar gets into his signature elements to make things funnier. Soubin Shahir also shows his usual comedy bits to make things lively. As writers, the major negative I have felt in Vishnu and Bibin’s creations is the way they have written parts for female leads in their movies. Both Samyuktha Menon and Nikhila Vimal have got characters that can be called as extended cameos. Bibin George as the antagonist was effective. The star cast of the movie has big names like Ranji Panicker, Dileesh Pothen, Baiju, Hareesh Perumanna, Arun Kurien and many more, but one actor who stunned me with the least screen time offered to him was Suraj Venjaramood as Dia’s father. And I was happy that a commercial potboiler like Oru Yamandan Premakadha used his that side instead of the eccentric comedy.
BC Noufal does know how to present a Vishnu-Bibin script. My expectations were pretty low ever since I saw those two teasers and that one song where Dulquer tries to be a typical Tamil hero. But by the time I finished the film, the mood wasn’t that skeptic. Like I already said, the formula Vishnu and Bibin uses is yet to get labeled as cliché and even when I laugh for their comedy, the inability of the duo to create a more compelling story makes me wonder about their longevity. The humor sense of the two is unique for sure. At one point Lallu tells Teny that it would have been really difficult if Teny’s mother was also blind (Teny’s father is a blind man) and in reply, Teny says if she was also blind they wouldn’t have needed an electricity connection. That joke had a level of smartness and I really wish these two would try to get out of their comfort zone in the future. The music was fine. The visuals suited the mood of the movie.
If you are someone who has enjoyed Amar Akbar Anthony and Kattappanayile Rithwik Roshan, then you don’t have to hesitate in taking a ticket for this one. Oru Yamandan Premakadha is as flawed and as entertaining as those two films.
Rating: 3/5
If you are someone who has enjoyed Amar Akbar Anthony and Kattappanayile Rithwik Roshan, then you don’t have to hesitate in taking a ticket for this one.
Green: Recommended Content
Orange: The In-Between Ones
Red: Not Recommended
