I was so enchanted to see Asif Ali enact the role of Sleevachan, a good-natured 35-year-old man with zero knowledge on how to deal with matters of sex and marital life, with such diligence and changing gradation that it was difficult for me to praise the importance, timeliness, and social relevance of this romantic drama. But I will make an attempt because Nissam Basheer would want me to as he has concocted a delicious recipe out of a sensitive topic. Marital rape and the indifference surrounding it in the state of Kerala and elsewhere in India has been handled with such deft in Kettiyollaanu Ente Maalakha (English: My Wife is My Angel) that it needs to be seen by everyone who is affected by it. Which is every human being, slightly limited only by their age. When Sleevachan is forced to marry someone not as a partner for himself but as someone who would take care of his old mother, he does not even look at his prospective wife when he goes to meet her and her family. The indifferent self-centered nature of this man is admired by that person (Veena Nandhakumar) who later becomes his wife, and so starts a conversationless tale of marital discord unknown to the people outside of the four walls of their yet-adorned bedroom. The anxiety and discomfort displayed by Ali and the voiceless concern shown by Nandhakumar (who might still need some acting classes) both enrapture you as you become a part of this Christian family where sisters-in-law have a say at everything and brothers-in-law are silent spectators and only care about the food. Everyone is nonchalant about what's going on and that's the way it is because sex is still taboo in India and no one talks about or teaches one about the things that one should do with their partner after marriage. Never breaking the obscenity line and only adding humour to the mix, writer Aji Peter Thankam only improves his social drama by making it more important as the plot goes deeper into the lives of Sleevachan and his pretty wife. There is so much to process in Kettiyallaanu Ente Maalakha, I would like to recommend it twice. Once with your partner and the second time with your whole family. It's totally worth it. TN.
