Varavelpu

I just finished watching this Mohanlal classic for the nth time.... and I am sure this was not the last time. Lalettan is simply superb in his personification of Murali, the Gulf-returned Malayali trying to find his feet in his homeland.

while there are several strands in the story that could pass of as clichés - like the family turning his back on him and the apparently insurmountable and entrenched negative forces out to destroy the honest and well-meaning hero - the greatest strength of Varavelppu is undoubtedly the integrity of the hero and his purpose. one almost feels an outrage while identifying with Murali - what seems to be a totally justified and humble right of his is so ruthlessly denied.

Varavelppu is definitely not a comedy despite the presence of our star comedians like Jagdish, Innocent, Mamukoya, Oduvil and Krishnankutty Nair, it is a very serious look at one man's struggle for what he believes his right and all the love and trust he loses and wins in the process. this is real classic of a movie and one almost feels thankful to the Sathyan Anthikad-Mohanlal duo after watching this...

Varavelpu (1989) : Brief Review -

A superb entertainer with feelings. That 80s perfect satirical black comedy which depicted the real struggle of a common man from Kerala. 80s was the best decade for black comedies in Indian cinema. Bollywood had 'Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro' (1983) and Malayalam Cinema had 'Nadodokkattu' (1987) and if you ask me then these two would be those top 2 films in this genre from 80s decade. But one thing i noticed today is, in both these films the characters are sort of on some mission of their own and major part of the narrative is built on pillars of misunderstanding. Varavelpu comes as a surprise. This film is more real than those two and there is no fictional advantage of misunderstandings. You know that is the weapon used by writer to make film better but once in a while it's more pleasing to see a realistic film in mainstream entertainment zone. In Varavelpu we meet Murali, who returns to his home in Kerala after working in Dubai for seven years. He decides to do social service for the people in his hometown, but fails due to the local politicians, fraudulence and other human errors. It is a complete family entertainer so if you are thinking that just because it is a black comedy so it would be something heavy stuff then be assured, you can watch this film with the family and every member of different age-group will find it amusing. In the first 30 minutes it's a family comedy, then it becomes a comedy of human errors, then we see a man fully trapped in professional problems, then it becomes a satire, then there's romance and the there's bittersweet ending based on social facts. Mohanlal is too good in this by far his most entertaining role at that time and rest of the cast is fine too. Writer Sreenivasan and Director Anthikad have managed to mix-up many things in comedy genre to gift a rare combo of entertainment.

RATING - 8/10*

By - #samthebestest.

A true portrayal of the sad situation in Kerela. Though this film was released in '89 the reality still stands true. This film looks like it was made on a small budget but doesn't matter. The direction was impeccable and the acting by all the characters were flawless. There was no attempt to embellish the story with any kind of melodrama and that's what held me to the story. Mohanlal portrayed correctly the frustrations, faced by most entrepreneurs in that State. Revathi has a vulnerability that almost makes your heart bleed for her. The movie was a social commentary such "Eenadu", which also was very good. The ending was befitting the movie because it did not try to go the well beaten popular path.

This is yet another Anthikkad-Mohanlal-Srinivasan gem about a Gulf Malayali who wants to settle down in Kerala. He buys a bus, and all his woes begin. Srinivasan's performance as the RTO officer is brilliantly hilarious. Must-see for all Mohanlal fans.