This movie is perhaps a testament
to the fact that an authentic story when told without the trappings of stardom
and superficiality can tug at the right strings of the audience heart.
Kumbalangi Nights or perhaps K Nights
is that one masterpiece that I hoped to see and more on screen – a brilliant
tale of the underdogs, of bonds, of human relations and emotions – woven with
craft and élan and yet so true to its roots. A movie that I failed to find
faults in, a movie where I immersed into the lives of the four eccentric
brothers of Kumbalangi and a movie where I participated in the ups and downs of
the ‘below normal’ lives of people. It is also a democratic movie that gives
space and depth to every character, that gives every actor a chance to showcase
his or her craft and where every character has its share of natural flaws and
charisma.
The movie itself is pure art in
motion – each frame absorbing the palette of colours of the water, of the
shrubs, of the fish and even of the grimy browns of poverty. If the visual
treat wasn’t good enough, the irony and humour of the crispy ‘in-your-face’
dialogues that erupt in every scene should keep you glued to this movie. But the
audio-visual support still pales in comparison to the stellar performances
meted out by every actor in the movie – it is almost a duel of artistic
brilliance and you cannot judge or give away the trophy to one amongst them. Whether
it’s the freshness of the ‘no-nonsense’ ‘Babymol’, or the careful nonchalance
of ‘Bobby’, the molten greys of ‘Shammy’ or the ‘remorsefulness’ and the ‘coming
together’ of ‘Saji’ – each actor has breathed such life and truth into the
portrayal that you cannot but help empathize and be drawn into the narrative!
I must also commend the moviemaker
of the sensitive portrayal of women in the movie – they are not ‘eye-candies’, not
‘props’ pushed into the movie to accentuate the ‘machoism’ of the men. Each of
them hold their ground and display an earthy realism of the strength, faith,
flaws and character of womanhood without the crutches of dramatic tears or emotional
‘feminism’.
While I struggle to pin the
beauty of the movie to its story, to its script, to its frames or to its stalwart
characters – perhaps I should give Soubin
his dues who sculpts a performance that leaves you dumbstruck – from the
brawling boozer to the ‘guilt-stricken’ friend to the ‘responsible elder
brother’ – he emotes and transforms with such ease and class that he almost invades
and captures every frame as his own!
K Nights brings back your faith in
classic storytelling which is the forte of Malayalam movie history and also
challenges other moviemakers to break their molds of star-struck stories and ‘wafer-thin’
supporting cast and characters. It cements your belief that an authentic and
true effort at a role can help create a masterpiece even without computer
generated imageries or ‘larger than life’ super stars – here’s to more good movies
that we can fondly rechristen as ‘classics’ of our times.
