KAYAL MOVIE REVIEW

Releasing on the eve of the 10th anniversary of the dreadful Tsunami of 2004, Prabhu Solomon has used this natural calamity as an important prop in his film Kayal.

 

The story as evidenced in the trailer is very simple and centers around the love of a young couple.  But the difference lies in the way Solomon treats this simple premise peppering it with interesting anecdotes that add value to the main theme.

 

As is always the case with Solomon’s films, Kayal is also a story that is set closer to roots thereby rendering the emotions a lot relatable. The opening frames make the audience sit up and take note with the way the scenes have been written indicating the travel and simultaneously revealing about his lead man Aaron played by Chandran. The part sure stands out different.

 

In his objective of narrating a soulful story, Solomon’s entire crew stands with him and the top man is undoubtedly music director Imman. His scores, be it in songs or at the background level, add valuable contribution in bringing out the vision of the director. Yugabharathy’s simple and uncomplicated lyrics render life to Imman’s scores and the character’s emotions.

 

Natural performance of the artists is a huge plus for Kayal. Chandran, the new find is powerful and glides through heavy duty emotional scenes with ease. His ruggedness and nonchalance are enjoyable to watch out for. On the other hand, Anandi as Kayal justifies her selection well with her large beautiful eyes doing most of the act for her. Her best scene would be the one where she travels in the lorry and the close up shots validate the confidence of the director in the young girl’s acting talent.

 

Even the characters in the periphery are well etched out and although the screen time of many is limited, they stay on well in the minds of the audience, the examples being the character Velu in the hotel, the thatha in the zamindar family and the lorry driver to name a few. The artist who has donned the role of Aaron’s friend delivers well as the perfect foil to the lead man.  

 

Vetrivel Mahendran’s camera travels to nook and corner of the country and brings out the lush greenery and the gargantuan Tsunami feel. The climax shot from the back of the Valluvar statue is definitely clap-worthy and the scene screams of the hard work and effort of the crew in bringing out the sorrow and heaviness of the disaster. 

 

The lighter moments in the film are mostly provided by Chandran and his friend’s antics and in many situations the policemen are at the butt of the jokes. 

 

The greatest strength of Kayal is that Solomon makes you root for his characters and you start echoing their feelings taking part in their joy and sorrow. However in the process of making this film a musical, Solomon does bring in a few lag moments. He could have done away with a couple of songs.

 

Toting up, Prabhu Solomon’s Kayal is a beautiful love story complemented by amazing visuals, exemplary music, some great performances and a greater writing.