A beautiful canvas of mesmerizing metaphors, a canvas of disjointed yet perfectly connected motifs a canvas where the ethereal is in perfect synch with the tangible- URUMI, the resurrection of Malayalam Cinema.
Santosh Sivan’s work is always a visual treat. But with URUMI he has gone the extra mile ensuring each and every scene is a story in itself. Based on the cult story of Chirakkal Kelu Nayaanar whose mission is to kill the Protugese Viceroy of India Vasco D agama, Sivan poignantly examines whether Vaso d agama was really an explorer or an invader. Made from the ornaments of dead women and children who were burnt alive in the massacre of Miri, the Mecca ship in AD 1502 commanded to be set ablaze by Vasco Da Gama, the golden Urumi is the recurring motif that symbolizes sacrifice, strife, and ultimately success.
What is striking about Urumi is the method of narration adopted by Sivan. In the beginning you may just wonder how the same characters play roles, both from the past and in the present. There perhaps could not have been a technique more fitting to communicate the fact that we are still caught in the tentacles of imperialism. Yes, we have succeeded as a nation and broken free from the shackles of foreign dominion and abuse yet, we are alas; still subservient to the imperialism of commercialism, the imperialism of political treachery, the imperialism of exploitation. If the forest of Kannadi in the movie, is protected by the goddess (Vidhya Balan) in the flashback, the mineral rich Kannadi is protected by the social activist Bhumi (Vidya Balan) in the present. The scheming minister to the Zamorin (Jagadish) reincarnates as the politician in today’s times. Vasco da Gama recurs as owner of the mining conglomerate eyeing Kannadi.
Urumi, is cinematography and art at its peak. Sivan has taken care of the minutest of details… the sand timer, the archaic pistol, the canons, the costumes.. everything has been carefully researched. Deepak Dev, has done a fantastic job with the background scores. But the songs do not live upto the expectations. Aaaro nee aaro, is perhaps the only hummable score. Pritviraj and Geneila I must say make a great pair. Genelia has matured as an actress, and the poise and elegance of her role has to be appreciated. But I really feel the show stopper is Jagathi Srikumar. His portrayal of the effeminate , scheming mantri in the court of the zamorin, and his reappearance as the politician in the fag end of the movie is simply mind blowing. As Jagathy steps out of his car, the plot suddenly becomes crystal clear, every doubt just vanishes and all you would just gasp and say “Wow!! What a movie…..”
There are bits of the movie where you just would seem lost, especially given the fact that the Malayalam in use is the archaic one..but this is something that cannot be helped! Hats off Santhosh…
URUMI my rating 4/5
