Liquor consumes Murali, somewhat than the opposite method round, as it’s with most individuals. Every waking hour is spent occupied with the way in which to get his subsequent drink, with out which he simply can not operate. Once, he sells even his daughter’s research desk to purchase a drink whereas one other time he’s proven ingesting a complete bottle of cough syrup to get excessive. Vellam, a colloquial utilization to check with drunkards, is this man’s story.
Filmmaker G. Prajesh Sen, who made his debut with Captain, but once more groups up with Jayasurya for Vellam. Said to be impressed from a real-life story, it chronicles how Murali (Jayasurya), who turns into a burden for his household, and the society round him, comes again from the brink and rebuilds his life.
Quite a number of movies have been made on individuals battling ingesting issues, most lately the Pirthviraj-starrer Paavada. Much has been stated about it already that there’s little so as to add. Vellam additionally does probably not say something new, however tries to go a lot deeper into the problem, portraying the sheer helplessness of somebody eager to recover from habit, and that of the individuals round him. It doesn’t have any parallel narratives taking the eye away from the drunkard.
Repetitive scenes
But after some extent, the scenes of a drunk Murali mendacity on the street or having a tiff along with his household turns into repetitive. It appeared the director wished to drill within the message and make the viewer really feel the drunkard’s plight. Editing out a few of these would have helped in slicing down the run-time of two-and-a-half hours. If not for Jayasurya’s earnest efficiency, these components would have turn into much more of a drag. He offers it his all as the person who can not think about life with out alcohol, even crawling on the ground and licking drops of spilt spirit. For Samyuktha Menon too, the position of Murali’s spouse offers ample scope to carry out.
Some of the scenes, just like the one involving a lacking gold ring throughout a household operate and the suspicion turning to the good-at-heart protagonist, have been harking back to fairly a number of different ones we’ve watched earlier than. Sequences like these appeared to be simply there to exploit some emotion. Whether because of the compulsions to stay to the real-life story or a reluctance to stray into uncharted territory, there may be nothing out of the field right here. The movie stays afloat strictly on the energy of Jayasurya’s efficiency.
Film: Vellam
Starring: Jayasurya, Samyuktha Menon
Direction: G. Prajesh Sen
