bhramam
Director: Ravi K. Chandran
Cast: Prithviraj Sukumaran, Unni Mukundan, Mamta Mohandas, Raashi Khanna, Shankar Panicker
When movie remakes come too soon, they crash. The Andhadhun of 2018, headlined by Ayushmann Khurrana, and written/assisted by Sriram Raghavan, was interesting. The plot about a blind pianist and how he walks into a murder and illegal organ trade had something to say, and the climax was a huge hit – although some may have missed it. A few weeks ago we had Maestro in Telugu (discussed in these columns), aided by Merlapaka Gandhi and Nithiin who played the lead role, which was a copy of Raghavan’s film. Maestro didn’t work for me, as it might not for those who had watched Andhadhun. Many may have done this considering that movies on OTT platforms now come with subtitles meaning you don’t need to know Hindi or Telugu to get a feel for the movie.
In what is certainly an overkill, we now have a Malayalam edition of the Hindi work. Called Bhramam (Mirage), it may not be an exact frame-by-frame copy of Raghavan’s creation, but is much the same, give and take director Ravi K. Chandran’s attempt to juggle the story. does this work? No, not at all – at least for those who would have seen Andhadhun/Maestro. First, Khurrana was fantastic as the blind pianist, and so was Tabu, as a woman who is married to a much older man – a faded star – and freaks out for a young cop.
But unlike Maestro, where there wasn’t much to say about the performances, Malayalam actor Prithviraj Sukumaran’s Ray Mathews – who reprises the role of Khurrana – is compelling as a pianist who gets sucked into a horrific crime such as murder committed. by a Chief Inspector of Police (Abhinav Menon of Unni Mukundan). He has an affair with the wife, Simi (Mamta Mohandas), of the celebrity of yesteryear, Uday Kumar (Shankar Panicker). When Uday walks into his own house and catches his wife with the cop, he uses his service revolver. It is at this point that Ray arrives at Uday’s flat to give a private piano concert, and since he is blind, Simi and Uday pay little attention to him as they bundle Uday’s body in a suitcase.
Mamta is not Tabu, who acted as the celebrity wife in Andhadun, but yes, Raashi Khanna (who is Anna, Ray’s girlfriend) stands out, and I felt she was a few notches better than Radhika Apte in Andhadhun. Raashi is expressive and offers a very nuanced piece of acting. But for her and Prithviraj, Bhramam could have been a crushing boredom.
(Gautaman Bhaskaran is an author and a film critic)
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