Mammootty walks off the bus and into the village in rustic Tamil Nadu and transforms from James into Sundaram. Walks into the home, changes his shirt, potters around inside the kitchen and drives out on the moped. There is no change in hair style, no quirk, no special expression on his face..nothing. As a matter of fact, there is no close up shot of the Malayalam cinema’s thespian till almost the finish when he stares into the mirror. And that is precisely why the 71 year old ( did i just type 71 ??!!) deserves all the accolades for his performance in #NanpakalNerattuMayakkam, now streaming on #Netflix. Just when you thought he was done, Mammootty pulls a rabbit out of his hat that leaves you transfixed!
For Lijo Jose Pellissery, his work in the film focuses on the reaction of the people and the acrimony that is created rather than the transformation of the lead character. And it is here that you see his genius at work . At multiple levels. Before I move on , don't get me wrong; the focus is still on the characters and not in as much measure on the story!
#NanpakalNerathuMayakkam, loosely translated as “ a mid-day slumber” is a simple one-line thread of a storyline that transcends schizophrenia, temporary amnesia, fantasy, slumber and perhaps just a dream. James ( #Mammootty), his wife and son and an extended family are returning from a pilgrimage to Velankanni in Tamil Nadu. James is characterized as a grumpy, ill-tempered patriarch with very little regard to the Tamil rustic lifestyle. There are simple points made to emphasize his transformation later in the story. For example, he likes his tea without too much sugar; he is not fond of loud music and is agnostic with regard to his faith. Most of the passengers sleep off as the bus trundles through the hot, dusty countryside. After a while the bus stops and our protagonist steps off and walks into the village where he has an uncanny familiarity with the home, people and the surroundings. He is also fluent in the local lingo. For the family, it is as if Sundaram has resurfaced albeit in a different avatar. For the locals, it is beyond contemplation and they are naturally irritated. The malayali relatives and friends in the bus do not know how to deal with the situation and there is chaos. It reminds you of what Pellissery conjured up in Jallikattu and Churuli.
On the surface, this is a dream meets reality drama with picturesque countryside panoramic cinematography (#TheniEswar) with slice of life vignettes and very detailed sound design that is technically perfect and befitting of a master of his craft. But #Nanpakal has many many layers and nuances that interestingly, you could miss and yet the story is complete in your head!!
The film opens with a frame, almost like it is a theater stage. And the characters enter this frame rather than the camera chasing the character. You see the frame motif being played out several times in the film, be it the pillars of the house, or the tube lights or the door.
And it is here that there is a deeper idea. The reference is to what plays out at some stage in the film - the words from the Tamil classic Thirukural “To sleep is to die; and to wake up from sleep is to take birth”. You begin to realize that the film is not so simple after all and very layered.
The concept of duality in the James/ Sundaram context is extolled through various seemingly imperceptible, almost banal trivia. Inside the bus, the passengers are watching a movie on the TV screen and you hear the dialogues. The film is #Parampara ( Mammootty starrer of 1990) and the scene is where an estranged father and son meet after a long while. Incidentally, Mammotty played both the role of the father and the son in the film!
Unlike his earlier films like #Angamalydiaries, #Ee.Ma.Yau, #Jallikkattu and #Churuli where there is on display aggressive masculinity, #Nanpakal is almost like a sedative meditative trance-like story. The screenplay (#Shareesh) is almost languid in the manner in which it plays out. #Pellissery’s direction seems to be more mature, less loud and flamboyant and more evolved. Some things are similar though; in Churuli it takes a bridge to transform a bunch of peaceful people to transform into snarling beats in an alternate universe. In much the same way, #Nanpakal beautifully captures an alternate universe the moment James when steps off the bus. That scene where the old woman is layering on the cow dung dollops on to an earth wall, so reminiscent of rural India of the nineties with Sundaram driving back and forth on this moped is truly classic. I think the character played by #Ashokan is written just to contextualise this languorous narrative; you see him urging the family to get ready quickly in the beginning and later, all he wants to do is to get back quickly so that he can open his ration shop.
Apart from #Ashokan, there is #RamyaPandian, #AdithyaSuresh, #RajeshSharma and #VipinAtley in various character roles. Another interesting feature is that the respective wives do not have too much of a fleshed role but they empathize with each other in solidarity. So do the two families even as they struggle to make sense of what is happening.
The ambient sounds of the movie playing in the bus or the radio or even the old blind mother listening to the television in Sundarm’s home serve as an interesting device to take the narrative further. At one juncture, the dialogue is “Partha Nyabagam Illayo?” meaning “Do you not remember me” … and this is both funny as well as intelligent because it is in the context of the story being played out. You may miss this but it does not take away from the understanding.
#Nanpakal is produced by #MammoottyKampany and #Amenmoviemonastery and edited by #DeepuJoseph. The film opens with a prayer written by #LijoJosePellissery that gives you a clue into where this is coming from. This is surely an advertising inspired idea, about dreams and smartly woven characters. #Nanpakal is almost #Fellini like, as it mixes visual dreamlike fantasy with beautiful abstract images coupled with a raw grounded feel that makes for a surreal treat. A simple idea transformed into magic in the hands of a master of the craft!
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