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Mallu Singh: Mass appeal & entertainment make it a winner, Unni Mukundan's a rising star

'Mallu Singh' directed by Vysakh (who is known for 'Seniors' and 'Pokkiriraja' fame) was 'housefull' and tickets were difficult to get in Ernakulam for the second show. But what interested me is that families seemed to flock to watch this colorful entertainer. The movie's mass appeal is its recipe for box office success. Kids seemed to enjoy every minute of this movie and the same goes for most families who had come to be entertained. Set in rural Punjab, the story of  'Mallu Singh' begins well but it lacks strong characterization, and that is the one thing that it needed most! There is no consistency to any of the characters given in this plot. All seem to run in different directions and for the same reason, the story is not as gripping as one would expect.






Mallu Singh Story is Weak, Inconsistent & Lacks Substance
Ani (who is played by Kunchacko Boban) goes to Punjab in search of a long lost cousin Hari (Unni Mukundan) only to discover that the Hari he knew has been replaced by a man called Hareender Singh who has Punjabi parents and four sisters he is extremely protective about. Confused by this, Ani makes friends with two other guys (Biju Menon and Manoj K Jayan) to find out if Hareender is indeed Hari in a disguise. Together, they get into 'investigative mode' that paves the way for several sticky, hilarious scenes that make viewers smile and laugh throughout the movie. Kunchacko Boban is getting better with handling comedy. He is coming out of the 'chocolate hero' mould and that itself is a refreshing sign.


Mallu Singh's four sisters roles are played by Aparna Nair, Meera Nandan, Rupa Manjari & Shawlin. But the story could have been better and could have given these fine actors some more 'meat' to make their characters more memorable.


Mallu Singh fails to tap talent of its actors
The film has a talented pool of some of Malayalam cinema's most versatile and fine actors. However, the director has not tapped their talent efficiently. Even for the sake of mass appeal, there is so much more that could have been done to improve the characterization. Actress Geetha, for instance, is an artist with tremendous untapped potential. Think of the movies that she has done in Malayalam and you will know what I am talking about. The same applies to Sai Kumar, Manoj K Jayan and Biju Menon, who are fantastic actors. The characterization and dialogues is funny but predictable and forgettable. Something 'extra' was missing when it comes to strengthening the plot with strong characters.


Mallu Singh Songs
Loud picturisation may be natural for this film but the songs are disappointing, forgettable and excessively loud.

Mallu Singh Verdict
It seems to be heading strongly as a box office hit. Families and kids are enjoying the film. There are no obscenities, vulgar jokes and so on that have recently become more loud in Malayalam films. The movie is meant to entertain families and it does that senselessly. There's fun, there's love, there's action and there's the promise of a refreshing new hero who can do better and better: Unni Mukundan is worth watching out for.



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Comments

Mélange said…
To be honest,I don't even look into the details of movies now a days.Just few hand picked ones will do.But that too happens like going through such reviews.Unni mukundan is of course a rising star..God knows when but all these directors and writers going to do something with the plot.
May 27, 2012 at 1:48 PM
Subhie Arun said…
wwo..thx for review..neva watch this movie....seems interesting!

http://subhieskitchen.blogspot.co.uk/
May 27, 2012 at 8:06 PM
Swapna Raghu Sanand said…
@Melange: U've got a point there. Most plots are now collages of different movies and one can always predict where its heading.

@Subhie Arun: Its entertaining but that's about it...thanks for stopping by.
May 27, 2012 at 10:31 PM
Roopa Pavan said…
Good reviews...
http://www.deccansojourn.com
May 28, 2012 at 6:46 PM
Unknown said…
Wassup girl ?! Haven't seen you in a while :)
May 31, 2012 at 10:40 AM
Haddock said…
Like Swapna said , now a days one can guess where a movie is heading.
June 4, 2012 at 1:44 AM
Anonymous said…
nice written
June 15, 2012 at 4:30 PM
Swapna Raghu Sanand said…
Thanks everyone for sharing your thoughts and feedback here.
June 23, 2012 at 10:25 PM
jk said…
NGDCs .. The two dialogue deliveries that I liked were .. one from the other Heroine while in train .. "Need not tell the name, and don't ask telephone number" .. Another one the Dialogue just before Interval where the Hero tells emphatically "Harinder Singh" .. rest of the movie except Unni Mukundan pack and an emotive scene before Truck Accident seemed pretty ordinary only .. Again all are NGDCs ..
June 24, 2012 at 5:02 PM
Arun said…
Had to sit through this movie on a bus journey recently.. uff!! It was way too loud. There was music running all through in the background. An ideal bgm score should have 'pauses' at the appropriate time! Also, as you rightly said, talented actors like Geetha, Sai Kumar, Biju Menon, Manoj K. Jayan are wasted in this film. Agree that it is a mass oriented film, but still...
November 4, 2012 at 1:10 AM
Swapna Raghu Sanand said…
Hi Arun, glad to hear that we share the same views on how the movie could have been crafted better. Funny thing is that the songs were popular with the masses and played at every occasion and junction. Makes one wonder what happened to melodies in our Malayalam films?
November 4, 2012 at 1:23 PM
Arun said…
Yeah all the songs in this movie had mass appeal. They should have included at least 1 melody, but the screenplay didn't have scope for that.

I am ok with that. It is the loud music score in the background, especially during those 'impossible' action sequences, that annoyed me.
November 5, 2012 at 5:58 PM
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