Mechilpuram

 16 March 2020. A date that will stay with me forever. A cold eerie dawn with an undertones of uncertainty. The day we made our way out of hostel, with the backdrop of the Covid Virus threat. Lockdown came a week later. It was like in the movies. Being smuggled out in the shadows of the dark. The narrative made it look like so (in a funny afterthought), but we had our flights in the morning Me and my friends were helped by the local driver, and got cooped up in a typical Omni van, on the way to Indore Airport. We were flying towards different directions. A fear within that I may never meet them again. Through the vast highway connecting Indore-Bhopal, our Rahul bhaiya sped on, the journey interspersed with some swathes of the Yellow/Orange streetlights that we are familiar with. Casting their long and eerie shadow on the deserted roads and lending an appearance that would add to my feelings of uncertainty. I could'nt fathom that we were travelling on a road that connected multiple ...

The year is 1999. The last step to a new millennium and a new population label. But amidst the global excitement for Y2K and the turn of the century, something unusual was happening in Malayalam cinema. A film was set to release, but it had no name. The Contest That Made History in Mollywood As the film hit theaters, viewers were encouraged to send in their title suggestions. The makers promised to select the best name from the entries and officially rename the film. This interactive approach was unheard of in Malayalam cinema at the time and turned out to be a brilliant strategy to engage the audience even before they stepped into the theater. After receiving numerous suggestions, the team finally selected Tokyo Nagarile Visheshangal (translated as Events in Tokyo City ).  NOTE - Due to lack of documentation owing to various constraints, the method used to announce and run the contest remains undocumented. I have checked sources like newspapers.com and archive.org for any potenti...

They say that "cinema is a reflection of society", and I'm of a particular notion that stories from different strata of society, whether morally righteous or morally grey deserve to be documented.  Trivandrum Lodge was one such film that provided a window to glance over, at how humans, just like us are perceived from the lens of reality. How they go to lengths to make ends meet, while grappling with their inner demons and explore themselves. Within the film, where taboo subjects and thoughts are commented on, where in general they would be frowned upon in the public, Malayalam Cinema did well to keep up with the times, taking the liberal street in the process. A U-turn from the conservative approach, that embraced storytelling in it's rawest form. A story of people with their quirks. A story, woven around stories, woven around a lodge waiting to tell a tale.  Welcome to the world of Trivandrum Lodge Character Sketch Dhwani  Breaking away from a failed marriage, ...

  Re-release Poster Credits:  Scube Films (Instagram) For all the re-release aficionados out there, after months of teasing, "Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha" is set to rerelease in theaters, on February 7 2025. Witnessing the masterpiece onscreen would be a different experience altogether and to spice proceedings, the official re-release trailer dropped earlier today. Re-release Trailer Credits: Matinee Now (YouTube) To witness M.T's delicate script essayed on screen to manifest Chandu's life, and ultimately facing off with his inner demons would be a lip-smacking treat. Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha - in theaters, near you, from February 7, 2025.

Read the words "Kalyanaraman" , "Pulival Kalyanam" , and "Mayavi", and what comes flooding at a sudden are a multitude of joyful memories, carved from the memorable moments from the no-brainer flicks, that has a single name etched to them in common. Shafi. The director who presented us with so many memories, comedy scenes and witty one-liners from his films had passed away earlier today. His movies were one that formed a core part of 90's kids childhood. With comedy scenes that we revisit every now and then to ease the struggles of a hectic day and one-liners that find it's way to day-to-day conversations between Malayalees, his contribution to cinema will always stand the test of time. He crafted movies that showcased an artist's performance of a lifetime. Performances that we like to recall countless times, for how it resonated with us, as our own. Iconic characters like Manavalan and Dharmedra from Pulival Kalyanam, Pyari and Ponjikara from ...

N.B - Thudarum might be slated for a release after “Empuraan”, which hits theatres on March 27,2025. A promising month with 4 movies to look forward to. Bring it on! Release 1 - Rekhachithram Director - Jofin T.Chacko Verdict - Good Definitely a movie that we can be proud of. It dabbles in the unchartered territory of Alternate history, blending in Kathodu Kathoram nicely to solve a murder case on the film's sets. This is an innovative attempt, which can hopefully forge more movies. For those going to see the movie, knowing the basic plot of Kathodu Kathoram would help, to set the context. Being a retro enthusiast, this film has entertained me well, with the allure of vintage costumes, trivia from Malayalam Cinema in the 80's and the location sets helping me to resonate with the movie. The gossip columnist character, played by T.G Ravi was one of my standout favorites. Further dictating the fact that gossip/cinema magazines had an infamous stronghold in the 80's to direct ...

 I’m maintaining this blog page to document my acquisitions of Audio CD's. 1. Lot 1 In order (from left - right):- Albums - What is Love? & New Eyes Artist - Clean Bandit Store - EBay (arrived within 42 days from the date of purchase) Con: No tracking was provided, as the Standard Shipping procedure was used. Lot 1 Albums

It's storytime... 4 pm rolled around today, and like most lazy Sundays with a Manchester United game ahead, I decided to order coffee and snacks from Swiggy Cafe 15 uneventful minutes later, a Swiggy partner glides by with my order and stops. Striding over, the partner handed me my order, mid-call and struck up a conversation with me, enquiring about my home state and language (juggling in both broken Kannada and Hindi can be tough with partners, leading to this interaction). Upon knowing that I hailed from Kerala, I saw a warm smile light up his face and he enthusiastically told me that he admired Dulquer Salman's movies. Hailing from Odisha himself, I guessed that he loved DQ's dubbed movies - which span across varied genres. What followed was a dazed walk back to my abode, with a smile on my face - as the partner glided away, now lost amongst the narrow lanes, on his way to don the role of a superhero, helping subside the tea-time and hunger pangs of fellow earthlings li...

Today, an immortal talent left us for eternal abode. Spanning a career across five decades of Indian Cinema, the bhavagayakan (emotive singer)  P. Jayachandran valiantly battled cancer and passed on, leaving us with many tracks to savor. Indeed, I'm left reminiscing at the words of Thomas Campbell at this time. "To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die." Being a child prodigy at school level, Malayalam Cinema was able to utilize Jayachandran across tracks that explore various emotions, aided with his mastery over vocals. These provided us with precious pearls across the seabed of Malayalam Cinema music. His tracks are a celebration of a soulful crooner and whose works will stand the test of time. What kept him distinct from other vocalists was how youthful his voice sounded, across years. A genuine character with no facade and a flair to persevere.  Here are some tracks to introduce you to Jayachandran's youthful voice and his musical mastery:- "Therarain...