Madanolsavam movie review: The dramatic journey of an “apolitical” common man

Cast: Suraj Venjaramoodu, Bhama Arun, Babu Antony, Rajesh Madhavan, Renji Kankol, P.P. Kunhikrishnan, Swathi Das Prabhu, Rakesh Ushar, Rajesh Azhikodan, Chandrika Madikai, Joval Siddique, Cameo: Ratheesh Balakrishnan Poduval     

Director: Sudheesh Gopinath

Language: Malayalam 

“He is apolitical, Sir,” a bystander cries out in a bid to save this film’s protagonist, Madanan Mallakkara, from being thrashed by a corrupt, physically intimidating netav called Madanan Manjakkara. Rather than serving as protection, this information causes the villain to address the hapless leading man with condescension and contempt.

The first name these two men share sparks off the drama in Madanolsavam. Madanan played by Suraj Venjaramoodu paints chickens and sells them for a living. When a wealthy Madanan (Babu Antony) stands for elections, the state’s dominant party puts up the poor Madanan as a dummy candidate to confuse the voter. Life goes downhill from there for this Madanan, who is tossed like a ping-pong ball between the two parties.

Also tossed around with him are his aunt, the widow Alice (Bhama Arun) and her child. Madanan dwells in a state of inertia in the early part of the film. Just when he is getting his act together, his life is snatched from him. He is naïve and disinterested in the goings-on beyond his own little world until then. Madanolsavam examines the question of whether he does and can stay that way when powerful forces threaten to rip his existence to shreds.

Directed by Sudheesh Gopinath, Madanolsavam is written by Ratheesh Balakrishnan Poduval based on a story by E. Santhosh Kumar. Ratheesh hit the bull’s eye with political satire as the writer-director of the deliciously wicked Nna, Thaan Case Kodu last year, and with his social commentary in Android Kunjappan Version 5.25 (2019). Madanolsavam does not near the high bar set by both but is an important comment all the same on a citizen’s political indifference inevitably turning to involvement and resentment in the face of personal suffering.

This Madanolsavam is no relation to the 1970s classic starring Kamal Haasan and Zarina Wahab. The title translates to Festival of Love/Passion/Lust, and in the case of the 2023 Madanolsavam is also a play on the number of Madanans in the plot. Festival of Madanan leads back to the first translation – ha! – because madana means “intoxicating, arousing sexual passion, delightful, pertaining to Cupid” (to quote my Malayalam dictionary) and because Madana is another name for Kaamadeva, the Hindu god of love, desire and pleasure. These multiple layers in the titling are a perfect fit since the starting block of the chaos in Madanolsavam is a political party disrupting Madanan Mallakkara’s sex life.

The narrative sets off at a languid pace with periodic infusions of humour as it establishes Madanan’s character and circumstances. It gradually gains momentum as politicians enter the fray. The languor and the rise in energy are initially promising, but in both cases, after a point the script and direction become a patchwork of highs and lows, novelty and repetitiveness.

Madanan Mallakkara is not just an individual but a metaphor for the citizenry who look the other way until they are themselves affected by the political class’ destructive games. This larger point made by Madanolsavam is highly relevant to a nation being ravaged by extremism while too many celebrities and members of the public wear their apathy and cluelessness as a badge of honour. Sadly, the writing does not explore the theme far enough.

What Madanolsavam gets right though is enjoyable and remarkably brave. For one, while the more moneyed and high-profile Hindi film industry cowers before the political establishment, here is yet another Malayalam film risking its neck to do what great art does. Though using fictional names, Madanolsavam makes no bones about the violence-prone, Machiavellian primary party in its story being Leftist nor about the crooked Madanan Manjakkara being from an aggressive, saffron right-wing group trying to make it in Kerala. In effect Madanolsavam is being critical of the governing party of Kerala and the Centre. It does not even feature a third group in this mix to assuage the feelings of those currently in power. These decisions by Sudheesh and Ratheesh are acts of courage that cinephiles in Kerala tend to take for granted.

One of Madanolsavam’s most consistent components in terms of writing, acting and direction are the hilarious Namboothiri hitmen who flaunt their upper-caste identity while the storytelling takes the mickey out of them and their pride. Ratheesh also shows himself to be more observant than most through a fleeting disdainful reference to Alice’s Christian religious identity made by Madanan Mallakkara’s aunt – this is a nod to an element of inter-community undercurrents in Kerala that is rarely addressed by liberals.

Suraj plays Madanan as a man with an awkward gait and gauche demeanour whose evolution is simultaneously barely discernible and unmistakable. It’s a good performance even if it does not rise above or beyond other fantastic work he has done in recent years. One thing is unclear: why is Alice attracted to him? That lack of clarity comes from one of the film’s lacunae: the vapid, hollow writing of its anyway scarce female characters.

Madanan Mallakkara and the Namboothiri men are Madanolsavam’s only expansively written roles. The choice of Rajesh Madhavan and Renji Kankol to play the Namboothiris contributes considerably too to their comedic impact. Skinny men with small physiques are rarely cast as gun-toting goons. In that sense, Rajesh and Renji are an amusing contrast to the towering Babu Antony playing the bad Madanan. Rajesh in particular aces his role, making it a worthy addition to a filmography that already boasts of Minnal Murali (2021) and Nna, Thaan Case Kodu.

P.P. Kunhikrishnan (memorable as the magistrate from Nna, Thaan Case Kodu) is a hoot as the hero’s uncle here. Swathi Das Prabhu as Alice’s beau has his moments before he peters out like so many characters in the film.

The only two women in the story are clichés. Alice is the sort of female part that abounds in mainstream cinema worldwide. Her sole job is being the object of the hero’s ardour. Bhama Arun is charismatic and deserves better. Chandrika Madikai plays a character too often seen in southern Indian cinema across languages: the hero’s older female relative who screams, shouts, even whacks him despite his physical might. Think Sarpatta Parambarai (Tamil, 2021), Kantara (Kannada, 2022), and now this.

Cinematographer Shehnad Jalal’s camera angles are crucial to the effectiveness of the physical comedy in Madanolsavam. The film mostly requires him to shoot in interior spaces, including Madanan’s low-lit, modest home, and to steer clear of larger-than-life imagery whether inside or outside these settings. In just a handful of instances though when the camera is outdoors, he deploys wide and extreme wide shots that offer a calming respite from the tumult in Madanan’s life even while delivering bursts of beautiful scenery. Kerala has been  so magnificently filmed by so many brilliant talents for decades that you may wonder what more anyone can do, but Shehnad’s exquisite framing of people crossing fields with luxuriant vegetation all around and distant mountains is a reminder of the infinite possibilities before an artist with imagination.

The politics and comedy in Madanolsavam see-saw between ups and downs, but the film’s highs are reason enough to watch it.

Rating: 2.75 (out of 5 stars) 

Madanolsavam is in theatres

Anna M.M. Vetticad is an award-winning journalist and author of The Adventures of an Intrepid Film Critic. She specialises in the intersection of cinema with feminist and other socio-political concerns. Twitter: @annavetticad, Instagram: @annammvetticad, Facebook: AnnaMMVetticadOfficial

Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News, India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.