Salt n Pepper - Ente vayaru niranja kadha... :)

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Movie - Salt n Pepper (Malayalam)

Director - Aashiq Abu

Producer - Lucsam Creations

Writers - Syam Pushkaran, Dileesh Nair

Cast - Lal, Shwetha Menon, Asif Ali, Mythili, Baburaj, Vijayaraghavan, Ahmed Sidhique, Kalpana

Music & Background Score - Bijibal

Cinematography - Shyju Khalid

Editing - V Saajan

Art Direction - Suresh Kollam

Costume Designer - Sameera Saneesh

Release Date - 8th July 2011

There's a scene in Salt n Pepper where an enthusiastic Baburaj eats a dosa from a lesser known thattukada for the first time and exclaims 'Ithivide ondayittu nammal ariyaandu poyallo!!'. I can bet that any filmmaker or writer who watched Salt n Pepper would've had the same thought about the movie after watching it. Such a beautiful story was there around and nobody noticed it. Until an awesome team of Aashiq Abu, Syam Pushkaran & Dileesh Nair decided to tell that story - of a middle aged man and woman, both lonely in their own ways, bonding over the best things of all - food, and falling in love eventually. And by telling this story, with utmost sincerity, genuineness and above all, with a lot of heart, they've won over each and every person who has seen the movie. And voila, we have the first true-blue romantic comedy in Malayalam. 

Kalidasan (Lal), an unmarried archaeologist finds his daily share of joy in a bottle of rum and the exquisite food prepared by his favourite cook Babu (Baburaj) whom he lives with. His nephew Manu (Asif Ali), a flirt also lands up in Thiruvananthapuram and stays at his place while searching for a job. Maya (Shwetha Menon), a not so young dubbing artiste and a major foodie herself, is also leading a lonely life without any companion and stays with Meenakshi (Mythili), her student roommate and her beautician landlord (Kalpana). A wrong number dialed by Maya out of pure craving for a dosa, gets her and Kalidasan talking over the phone. The relationship matures from fights to friendship and bonding, over their favourite topic - food. But when they decide to meet each other finally, insecurity crops up in both their minds, which leads to complications they didnt ask for. Salt n Pepper then moves on to tell us what happens to their relationship eventually. 

Aashiq Abu opens his film with a mouth-watering title song 'Chembavu' in the rustic vocals of singer Pushpavathy and prepares us for the delicious feast he has in store for us. The simple love story works brilliantly because of the wonderful storytelling, three dimensional & human characters, great but subtle humour, amazing performances and some fantastic technical work. Unlike every other Malayalam film, there's no particular hero, heroine, villain, comedian, and other supporting characters just for the sake of it. Each character in the movie has a soul and a story to tell. Vijayaraghavan's love story, how Baburaj met Lal and his attachment to his master, the silent and always smiling Mooppan, upadeshi KT Mirash, Kalpana and her beauty parlour, the Muslim lady who wants to look beautiful for her husband even though she is just another burqa clad woman for the rest of the world and so on. These characters with their individual stories and back stories make for such an all round experience of watching the movie. 

Another thing which makes the narrative rich are the simple day to day activities done by the characters in different scenes. Lal trying to get an antique table fan running over the course of a couple of scenes, preparation of food at both Lal's and Shwetha's places, the casual banter and interactions with colleagues at their respective offices and so on and so forth. All these touches make the narrative as close to reality as possible and we never get the feel that we are watching a film made by some people. It unfolds as if it is happening around us. When most other filmmakers now are trying to thrust their signature styles upon the audience in all possible ways, Aashiq Abu simply takes the audience to a comfortable space which they can all relate to and lets them enjoy their time there. 

The movie has two equally important lead characters played by Lal & Shwetha Menon. Nowhere do we see an effort to make the movie a hero's movie or a heroine's movie. Both of them get equal space and time and we see both their view points effectively. Lal is an absolute treat to watch. The mimicry artiste-turned-writer-turned-director-turned-producer-turned-actor is simply fantastic in this film. The rugged, indifferent and tough outer cover and the soft, romantic and insecure inner side of Kalidasan are safe in Lal's hands. And the writers have designed a special tribute to their lead actor in the climax of the movie and those lines get the loudest applause in the movie. Given the right roles, this man can give all our superstars a run for their money. ;) Shwetha Menon, after a whole bunch of heavy duty roles (both glam and de-glam) gets to play a simple character which she plays with utmost conviction. Be it her professional parts as a dubbing artiste, or her craving for food and bonding with Lal over the phone or her insecurities over her looks and life so far in the second half, she is outstanding in the movie. Her Maya is surely one of the most memorable female characters in Malayalam in a long time. Malayalam Cinema's favourite dubbing artiste Bhagyalakshmi who dubbed for the dubbing artiste played by Shwetha also has done an amazing job as usual. 

Asif Ali knows to pick the right films. The youngster has been part of some very important films in the 2 years he has been in the industry and has also gained experience working with some of the best directors we have. He plays the second lead, a complete contrast to whatever Lal is, and plays that with flourish. His voice, which is usually a negative in his performance has been put to good use here and fits naturally to the character. His comic timing has also improved tremendously. Mythili is not that great. Neither does she look good or there is anything special in her performance. Yes, she has done much better compared to the other films she has done so far. But one wishes for a better girl in her role at times while watching the movie. 

The rest of the supporting cast are brilliant. Baburaj who goes for a 360 degree turn in a wonderful comic role is the best among the lot. One could never guess that this guy who comes just to get beaten up by the hero in every damn movie, could perform so well. Kudos to Aashiq Abu for this exceptional casting choice. The scene where Lal meets Baburaj is a gem. Vijayaraghavan shows a romantic side to him, which was unknown to us until now and makes his scenes memorable. Newcomer Ahmed Sidhique plays the irritating upadeshi friend of Asif's, KT Mirash and brings the roof down with his antics. The character was damn interesting and one wishes for some more scenes featuring him. Watch out for this guy, people. :) The Mooppan is a wonderful presence. Kalpana is just about fine. And of course, the horny bearded director was a scream. (One must be an idiot not to realize whom the joke is on). Archana Kavi's 5 minute cameo is much better than all her earlier performances (other than Neelathamara) put together. 

For the second time this year, two writers have done Malayalam Cinema proud. While it was Bobby & Sanjay with Traffic earlier this year, its Syam Pushkaran & Dileesh Nair with Salt n Pepper now. Their simple, warm and tight screenplay is the backbone of the movie. Various types of food and even Lal's Premier Padmini car with a defunct radio plays an important role in the narrative and its interesting to see how they've used these devices in their storytelling. And combined with Aashiq Abu's able direction, its a perfect recipe for success. And yes, like Dil Chahta Hai changed the way dialogues were written in Hindi Cinema, Salt N Pepper's dialogues are sure to have a similar impact in Malayalam Cinema. They are fresh, witty, conversational and do not sound like written dialogues (unlike most other Malayalam movies). Three cheers to Syam & Dileesh. :) 

Shyju Khalid's cinematography is exquisite. The way his camera has romanced food in this film has to be seen to be believed. The Juan's rainbow sequence is sure to get each and every one's mouth watering and is one of the most awesomely filmed sequences in recent times. SnP is also one of the first movies to be completely shot on the Red One digital camera in Malayalam and the result is as good as film. V Saajan's editing keeps the film going seamlessly and you never realize how smoothly one sequence has given way to the next. Art Direction by Suresh Kollam is another great positive. The colours used in the houses and spaces of each character is distinct and tells a lot about the characters themselves. Antiques at Lal's house, the warm colours in Shwetha's & Mythili's space, etc are great touches. Sameera Saneesh's costumes are attractive, yet as real as they can get. 

Bijibal is perhaps one of the best composers we have today. And his job in SnP reinforces that fact. The movie begins with the rustic 'Chembavu' and sets the mood. And later the sublime 'Premikkumbol' plays out in the beautiful vocals of Jayachandran & Neha Nair when Kalidasan & Maya's subtle romance starts blooming. The song has been edited very well by Saajan and the kind of chemistry they share in this song, without meeting even once is lovely. Its the same chemistry that is the absent in the song featuring the young couple Asif & Mythili - 'Kanamullal'. The song is shot very well, but somehow doesnt give the required romantic feel due to the lack of chemistry between the two. And the 'Neela Vaanam' inspired reverse technique (which itself was inspired from elsewhere) doesnt work. And of course, the movie concludes with a kickass music video of Avial's Aanakkallan which leaves us in high spirits. The background score stays with you much after the movie is over. 

All in all, Salt n Pepper is a delicious feast served hot by Aashiq Abu and team, putting all their heart into it, and it has got everything in it to satisfy Malayalam Cinema which has been starving for change. A simple, lovely romantic comedy which breaks all the present conventional formulas in Malayalam, this one is surely a must watch. A big Thank You and hug to Aashiq Abu, Syam Pushkaran, Dileesh Nair and all the other 'Smart Boys' who worked together to make this lovely movie. 

Bottomline - Ente vayaru niranju, manassum!!

P.S. - As an aspiring writer & filmmaker, I had been writing my scripts for Tamil and was developing a romantic comedy idea for Tamil/Hindi despite being a Malayali and having so much love for our cinema, thinking that there's no hope left there and such a genre would never exist or be accepted in Kerala. But SnP has now given me confidence to try it out in my own mother tongue - Malayalam. :) :) 

P.P.S. (To the team of the movie) - Aa Avial T-Shirts evide kittum?? Thattil kutti doshayum.

Pyaar Ka Punchnama - The funniest tragedy I've seen!!

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Movie - Pyaar Ka Punchnama (Hindi)
Writer/Director - Luv Ranjan
Producer - Abhishek Pathak
Cast - Kartikeya Tiwari, Rayo Bakhirta, Divyendu Sharma, Sonalli Sehgal, Nushrat Bharucha, Ishita Sharma
Music - Clinton Cerejo, Hitesh Sonik, Luv Ranjan, Ad Boys
Cinematography - Sudhir K Chaudhury
Editor - Akiv Ali
Release Date - 20th May 2011

There have been n - number of movies in India which featured issues of exploitation (physical, emotional, social) of women by men. Pyaar Ka Punchnama addresses a different issue, which is important in its own way - the exploitation of the emotionally weaker sex, MEN, by women at so many different levels. There are so many people to speak for women, but what about men, who do not even acknowledge such problems to themselves, leave alone talk about it to others, just because they're supposed to be 'Men'. Luv Ranjan cleverly brings all this together in his brilliant satire on relationships, Pyaar Ka Punchnama soaked in sharp humour, something which 3-time National Award winning director Madhur Bhandarkar so miserably failed to do in his lousy attempt at romantic comedy, Dil Toh Bachcha Hai Ji. 

Rajat (Kartikeya), Vikrant Chaudhury (Rayo) & Liquid/Nishant (Divyendu) are 3 best buddies sharing an apartment in Delhi, each having his own boring job and list of frustrations, the biggest of them being that they are all single. And as their lives progress, Rajat falls for Neha (Nushrat), Chaudhury gets closer to Riya (Sonalli) and Liquid finds his first female friend in Charu (Ishita Sharma). Rajat moves on to a live-in relationship with Neha, Chaudhury helps Riya get over her break up with ex, Varun and Liquid tries to be an honest best friend to Charu who rejects his proposal. From here on, the lives of the 3 of them turn topsy turvy in ways they couldnt have imagined. 

3 different shades of modern day relationships are explored in the process of the narrative and its guaranteed that every guy who watches this movie would find at least some of him in either of the 3 characters. Be it Rajat, who tries to do everything to keep his complaining girlfriend happy or Vikrant who honestly tries to help Riya to get over her previous relationship; and the most honest of them - Liquid, who tries to be a support system for the manipulative colleague who is just interested in using him at her pleasure; being the biggest loser of them all . Many might have complaints that the movie has painted all its female characters completely evil. But hey, thats not true. The movie actually portrays how much more stronger they are compared to men, when it comes to the mind. They are confused most of the time;  but if they make their mind that they want something, they know the exact ways to get it done. The guys are not all white either. They have their own flaws and problems as well. 

[And even if the female characters are leaning towards negative shades, is that such a big problem? Dont men stay quiet when almost all of them are stereotypically depicted as lecherous creatures behind the woman's body in almost all of those female-oriented movies?? This movie tells how men feel about certain women who manipulate them. So take it like that, and if you cant handle it, then please dont watch this movie.]

The movie doesnt have your typical Hindi film romance or heroes or heroines. One of our heroes cries like a baby falling on her lap when she tells him that she's leaving him and another is terribly humiliated in his own office by someone for whom he remained a loyal dog. So if you are used to the Rajshri, Dharma, Yashraj kind of romances, stay away from this one, as this shows the real deal. Not all relationships may not be like the ones shown in this movie, but most of them do go through several stages which are depicted in this movie for sure. The movie tries to understand the toughest question of them all - 'What does a woman really want?' and fails in its quest by the end, just like our heroes. And director Luv Ranjan has done that with a confident and irreverent attitude by portraying many heartbreaking moments through such hilarity. 

The performances by the 3 guys are fantastic. Divyendu steals the show beyond doubt. Playing the desperate, seedha-saadha Liquid who is all talk but no action, he is just mindblowing. He gets the best lines in the movie as well. Kartikeya's hopeless lover who loses it after a point is brilliant in his own way. Watch out for him in his 6-minute long monologue (one of the best I've seen in Hindi), he's too good in it. Rayo plays the laid-back Chaudhury, in his undies whenever he's at home, with a guitar for company most of the time. He also makes a confident and impressive debut. Out of the ladies, it is clearly Nushrat who plays Neha who gets the maximum screen time and makes the most use of it as well. She plays her part so well that it is hard not to hate her. ;) Sonalli as Riya is neither attractive nor very effective, but since her character is written well, we dont mind it so much. Ishita is impressive playing the manipulative Charu effectively. And each of these actors should thank their writers for giving them such effectively etched-out characters. 

You're so immersed in the narrative of the movie that it is hard to notice the work of the rest of the crew. Sudhir Chaudhury's slick and flashy cinematography sets the right mood for the film. The bachelor pad created by the art director would make every guy wish to have one like it, even though its mostly in a mess. Akiv Ali has put together the 3 different tracks very well, but he could've sharpened the movie a bit more in the second half. Music and background score are super-effective, even though one or two songs unnecessarily slowed down the pace. The 'Ban gaya kutta' song has been used to hilarious effect in many scenes. 

Pyaar Ka Punchnama has more laugh-out-loud moments than all the mundane comedies that Bollywood has been producing over the past few years. And the movie makes sense too. Now, thats a rare combination in Bollywood. If Dil Chahta Hai set the benchmark on narrating stories on friendship and relationships in the last decade, Pyaar Ka Punchnama does that for this decade, without any star power to back it. The dialogues are howlarious, especially Rajat's monologue. [The constant beeps everytime there was the slightest of abuses, were really annoying. Will our Censor Board ever grow up?]

It is a perfect buddy film. And its also a tragedy in the sense that every man, be it Superman or Batman, was a dog to his woman at some point or the other. So guys, go catch this flick after a couple of beers with your best friends and have a great time. Hilarious scenes, great performances and a fresh take on relationships. What more could you ask for!! And please dont make the mistake of taking your girlfriends along, as it might lead to events of disastrous proportions. ;) 

If Woody Allen ever made a mainstream Hindi movie, it would be something like this. And yea, I think I can take some liberty and call Pyaar Ka Punchnama as the Dil Chahta Hai of this decade. It actually goes much beyond where Dil Chahta Hai went. Luv Ranjan and team, take a bow!! 

Bottomline - Launde log, is film ko dekh lena apne doston ke saath, immediately!!