Kerala Varma Pazhassi Raja

Hariharan-M.T Vasudevan Nair-Mammootty team After 20 Years..After evergreen classic Oru Vadakkan Veeragadha..Expectations were sky high...Did they meet it..?My answer is a big YES...Yes one of the best war films in India..No doubt..

But comparing it with OVVG is not a good thing...In OVVG MT had full freedom to mould his character with multi-shades because of its fiction or fantasy treatment of Vadakkan Pattu. Here it is a chapter from History..So He used a safety path of straight forward storytelling...We can say script wise MT Excelled in OVVG than this..But a war film from history is not at all an easy task..Because common audience have to follow the path with less troubles..Here MT succeeded 100% with a gripping screenplay within the commercial format...You can see the beauty of dialogues here also..

Hariharan...Seriously I was very much doubtful about his treatment..Because of his recent deliveries..But he corrected in this one...His directorship is very much apt for this movie...He superbly handled(utilised) actors and production crew in all categories..

Mammootty...Who can else in Malayalam to portray a Legendary King...His screen-presence will do half the things..He performed it with subtle manner..kind of underplay...exactly opposite of Chandhu in oVVG...For fans It will be little bit disappointment...Because MT did his characterisation in this way...Thats the one of the best thing about the script..Otherwise it would have been a one-man show...

Sarathkumar...A real warrior in all aspects...Most favourite character in this film for masses..One of his career best..Manoj,Pathmapriya other protagonists..are also in good form... Technical side: Ramnath shetty:- Beauty of frames without camera gimmicks...Night shots the best one in Malayalam..(He excelled in these category in Virumandi also.."Unnai vidai" song). Resuls Sound Mixing...IMO, it's his best work than Oscar slumdog...BGM is good..But Raja sir could have done it even better...

Next is Gokulam Gopalan...big applause for his guts and dedication for this project..

I'm not going to the negatives...(because those are very minute things here...) This kind of films...Rarely happens in Malayalam...A real pride of Malayalam....

All the questions which people had before the release have vanished now. What were they cooking for more than two years- Hariharan, MT and Mammootty? Now, we know- The most classical most commercial most unbelievable Indian film of the century (As Mammookka himself said). Although everyone contributed well in this film, most technicians are passengers safely traveling with Hariharan in the driver's seat and MT beside him.To call Hariharan's contribution "the greatest effort by a Malayalam director ever" would be an understatement. The care he has taken to make it a classic, the power to control the actors & background, the conviction to make a film which no one would dare and his undeniable directorial brilliance is what primarily elevates the film. To think creatively while controlling a project like this for such a long time is not easy and he made it seem like a cakewalk. A special thank you to him for proving that silence CAN also get the attention of the people. There was pin drop silence in the theaters during some emotional scenes without dialogs. That's the power of cinema. NOT a hero,heroine, villain and comedian who keep speaking from start to finish in one frame (Like so many Malayalam films these days). Hariharan's craft is unparalleled.

So many accusations came for the film while it was being made and you have to hand it over to the crew for having faith in the film. MT Vasudevan Nair is undeniably one of the greatest living writers in India. There are people criticizing him for the film, but it is because they really just don't have anything bad to say about it, so they say something. We should remember that compared to any other Malayalam cinema, Pazhassi is miles ahead in terms of content and budget, and it has been possible because the script travels easily from one scene to the next. The second half just sails and I didn't feel a lag at any point. He deserves credit for making pazhassi's presence felt even in the scenes without him. Gokulam gopalan, what to say?. Considering the size of our industry, He is the bravest producer of ALL TIME in the history of world Cinema. I can only imagine how many people would have told him he is making a big mistake. He should thank hariharan and MT for being able to walk with his chin up. I doubt if he would have spent so much if it wasn't them in the movie. This movie is a testimony of all of their sincerity.

Mammuka! Nothing to say! He is the King! Purely majestic! He is magic! This is probably the only movie where he has acted the most with his eyes. Be it-the sandhi scene or the whole of second half. After getting disappointed with so many recent films, it was heavenly to see him in this. He should thank his gurus for this chance. At the same time, the fact is, this movie would never have happened if it wasn't for mammootty., who else will play the role? Padmapriya was the second hero in my opinion. FINALLY! A FEMALE CHARACTER IN A SERIOUS ROCKING ROLE! Phew! The way Malayalam cinema has been treating women in the past years has been disgraceful to say the least. All stereo typed roles of wives and underplayed sex objects! Kudos to hariharan & MT for bringing back woman power. (Panchagni is one of my favorites) I am happy Mt has nothing explicitly bad to say about women in this movie unlike OVV. Really I don't understand what his issue is sometimes. He almost bordered on it once in a scene with mammootty and kanihaa. The rest of the cast were top notch: Sarath (WOW), Manoj and kanihaa rocked! Jagathy and suresh and rest of the cast also! But really, this is a technicians film. All these actors have acted in a lot of other films, but could never get this reaction from us, that's purely because of the director. The other technicians were splendid too. Raman shetty, Resul, Ilaiyaraaja, Sreekar Prasad, art design and whole crew! Was fantastic. I don't know if Im eligible to criticize an Oscar winner, his sounds were great but sometimes there was too much in wars. There was no clarity overall. It was tough to separate the music and sound. I don't really care if there are other negatives. After such an effort, it is sinful to comment on the bad aspects. This is the best Malayalam film of all time so far (Especially considering the current situation of the industry). And the Malayalam audience can take pride in the fact that they have made it a success. This proves that we love good cinema more than just any star. One thing is for sure. Like OVVG, Pazhassi will live forever. Gopalan can take pride in the fact that he has made an investment that will live forever. He has to thank two people for it:

Heart of the movie: Hariharan Brain: MT

Gokulam gopalan and mammuka can take a bow.

LAST NOTE: This is a once in a lifetime Malayalam movie. No matter how optimistic we be, the truth is our generation will not witness such crowds and excitement again.

Indian ANSWER TO TROY,GLADIATOR BRAVE HEART. Its most awaiting movie in India.Its just not an Indian Cinema. Its a world cinema. Famous Indian actor, who won 3 National awards in Two different languages Padmasri Bharath Mammootty done the title role. The movie is simply awesome telling the story of one of the first freedom fighter in India Kerala Varma Pazhassiraja. Film is directed by Hariharan and the story is written by Famous award winning Indian writer MT Vasudevan Nair. The film is dubbed in to 5 languages. Hope this film will be rock in red carped. The sound mixing is done by Oscar winner Resool Pookutty. For more just watch the movie and enjoy.

For a Mollywood cinephile, there are quite a few reasons to watch Pazhassi Raja .Not only that it is made in the biggest budget ever in Mollywood, it is also an offering from the masters of the media, including Mammootty, M T Vasudevan Nair and Hariharan. Moreover, there are a plenty of other great names including Rasul pookuuty, Ilayaraja, Sharath Kumar and a plenty of others whose credits itself demand interest. Above all, it is the first visual rendering of the most fascinating epoch making struggle of the great leader, against tyranny and oppressions of the British.

Expectations are obviously sky high. And the question is whether it has lived up? And the big answer is 'yes'. The movie is indeed a masterpiece, which grab your attentions from the word go, taking the acceptable cinematic liberties to keep your attention all through, though in a story that everyone knows very well. Set in the final years of seventeenth century, the brilliant writer in M T has taken extreme caution to avoid the complications in narrating history. He goes by the safer path , concentrating more on pazhassi and his men and just giving out the necessary touches of historical facts .And thus the movies gallops over the first barricade of just being a realistic historical.

The movie begins with the Britisher's decision to levy heavy takes from the local rajahs. Pazhassi who belonged to the Kottayam Royal family of Thalassery region oppose this and becomes the first ruler from the state for British, to be branded as a big enemy to fight it out. Pazhassi who is forced to flee from the his palace starts a carefully planned counter action ,with the aid of his trusted lieutenant Edachena Kunkan, Sharath Kumar, Kaithery Ambu (Suresh Krishna). He gets the full fledged support from the kirichiers and tribes headed by Thalakkal Chandhi and Neeli who fights the Britishers wit Guerrilla warfare , with tribal weapons .British face heavy setbacks in various confrontations and as many as five hundred from British army are killed in fight with Pazhassi. Though Pazhassi was able to surprise the British with his tactics and bravery, traitors like Pazhayawvedam Chandhu helps the British to gain momentum and capture each of Raja's men.

The movie shows the grace of its great names in many a points and it is sure without an expert team of technicians like this, it's just impossible to execute a movie of this magnitude. In terms of visual and creative terrain that this movie covers, the big salute must be given to Rananath Sheety and Venu's mind blowing Camera-work, Ravi Dewan's action direction, splendid costume and art direction by N Muthuraj . The only aspect that could have been better include Ilayaraja's music and background scores, though songs like'' kunnathe'' are gems which may once again give the desi nightingale ''Chithra'' another big accolade. And some have craved for some more brilliant dialogues form M T, to be planted on the megastar's character.

Coming to the performances, Mammootty has given a restrained performance as the graceful raaja, but his screen presence and body language is s enough to carry the heavy character with ease. The director also seems to have decided to keep the central character more manly, without heroic build-ups until the last reels. Sharath Kumar comes up in a surprise package, with fantastic heroic looks and emotes well and gives some great action sequences. It is definitely one of the best roles ever by the Tamil Star. Manoj K Jayan and Suresh Krishna, along with Padmapriya and Kaniha, make the movie a treasure of performance with exhilarating performances.

Overall, Pazhassi Raaja remains as a great movie with brilliant direction, solid performances spectacular visuals. Never miss it, of you will be missing a classic, a brilliant tribute to the first freedom fighters who fought a valiant battle realising the inherent death, but to safeguard their honour and their land.

I have to say, I was taken by surprise. Something as Grand and Majestic as this could pop out of Malayalam film industry!! I am proud, being a Malayali myself. I loved it.

The movie begins with the British's decision to take heavy taxes from the local people under the Rajahs. Pazhassi who belonged to the Kottayam Royal family of Thalassery region oppose this and becomes the first ruler to resist them and fight it out. Pazhassi who is forced to flee from the his palace starts a carefully planned counter action, with the aid of Edachena Kunkan(Sarath Kumar)and Kaithery Ambu Suresh Krishna). He gets the full support from the kurichiers and tribal people headed by Thalakkal Chandhu( Manoj K. Jayan) and Neeli(Padmapriya) who fights the British using Guirella Warfare tactics. British faced heavy setbacks in various confrontations. Though Pazhassi was able to surprise the British with his tactics, traitors like Pazhayaveedam Chandhu helps the British in the later part of the warfare and capture each of Pazhassi's men.

Mammooty has given a graceful & effortless performance as Pazhassi Raja making him as Humanly as possible. Sharath Kumar gives us an electrifying performance as Kunkan with his machismo and sword fights. Kaniha, on the other hand, could have done better. I wasn't very impressed. Padmapriyas character maybe(I am not sure) first of its type in Malayalam films. She has handled it well and so has Manoj K. Jayan with his Thalakkal Chandu. Lalu Alex, Captian Raju, Thilakan..etc all of them have done a fine job. Its the English actors who really sucked. They should have put more professional actors. The cinematography was simply brilliant, capturing the beauty of Malabar Region. The sets and costumes and the lighting were excellent, simulating that bygone era on the silver screen. The music score by Ilaiyaraja is magnificent. The direction was good and so was the legendary M.T.'s script. The war scenes were impressive, except for the gravity defying stunt scenes.

Overall Pazhassi Raja is a great flick to watch. 9/10