Orayiram KinakkalalPramod Mohan's directorial debut 'Orayiram Kinakkal' is a family tale where the protagonist is all good and naive. The script, with sparse comedy, hinges on the quintessential Utopian wrap of good-comes-to-the-good.
It is 'invited troubles' and misery all the way for the protagonist, Sreeram (Biju Menon), an NRI from London, who intends to settle down in Kochi with his expectant wife and his young daughter. Sreeram's deep pocket and an even richer heart saves him little from distress and disaster. His naivety appears to be the biggest enemy as he leaps from juice to jam.
Sreeram, on a hustle to start his dream restaurant, gets into a tangle of moneylending where Lalaji (Sai Kumar) is the king. He meets the charming but vicious Jaison (Roshan Mathew) whose life revolves around making easy money. Sreeram's life is a maze as Jaison spins up shady plans.
Biju Menon's effortlessly enacts the lead role - be it the jovial family sequences or the more terse wriggle-outs. Roshan as Jaison is a power-packed schemer with the right amount of action and evil.
The milieu is built in the first half but with a definite lag. The script packs a twist towards the interval and sustains audience interest. Later on, actor Shajon, who plays a crooked top cop, chips in with a classy performance.
Debutante Sharu Varghese who essays the female lead lends credibility to the character but Sakshi Agarwal, who play's Sreeram's wife, has little to offer. Nirmal Palazhi's comic interludes jut out of the script and falls flat.
The lyrics are not anywhere arresting but the camera has captured the night glints of Kochi. The art department chips in with aesthetic and cosmopolitan cafes, flats, and hospitals.
The movie qualifies well as a one-time watch. After all, dreams are what all of us are made of!
Rating: 2.5/5
