'Pennu Case:' A light con, flipped with wit and restraint | Review

The phrase 'Pennu Case' is part of everyday parlance in Kerala and is usually deployed to describe men accused of harassment, deception, or dubious romantic entanglements. Debutant director Febin Sidharth turns the phrase on its head in 'Pennu Case,' placing a woman at the centre of the con and men at the receiving end. It is a simple reversal, but one that lends the film its modest novelty.

Inspired by real-life incidents, the film follows Roshini (Nikhila Vimal), a woman whose trail of marriages stretches from Kanyakumari to Kasaragod. The story opens amid chaos at a police station, triggered by a scuffle during her wedding to Subhash (Aju Varghese). The case lands on the desk of a short-tempered but perceptive Circle Inspector (Hakkim Shah), newly transferred on punishment duty, who begins to piece together the odd pattern behind the complaints.

Co-written by Sidharth and Reshmi Radhakrishnan, Pennu Case adopts a deliberately uncomplicated narrative style. Its approach is closer to the light-hearted marriage-fraud comedies popularised by Suraj Venjaramoodu’s Nagendra Honeymoon than to darker psychological explorations. The humour is gentle, the plotting linear, and the tone largely unthreatening. While this keeps the film accessible, it also results in a mystery that lacks depth. Certain motivations and transitions feel underdeveloped and leave small but noticeable gaps in the narrative. That said, the brisk runtime works in the film’s favour and the makers sensibly keep the story moving towards a reasonably engaging climax.

Malayalam cinema has rarely positioned women as full-fledged antagonists outside familiar domestic archetypes of the manipulative mother-in-law or the scheming spouse. Though recent films have begun to test those boundaries, 'Pennu Case' operates within safer limits. Roshini is not a psychologically dense character. Her actions are sketched lightly and without the moral or emotional weight seen in darker portrayals of deception. The repeated marriage motif may recall characters such as Mammootty’s Stanley Das in Kalam Kaval. But 'Pennu Case' is content to remain a mild social comedy rather than a probing character study.

Nikhila Vimal handles the role with restraint and steps away from her familiar vivacious screen persona to inhabit a character marked by quiet calculation. She does not overplay the moral ambiguity, a choice that suits the film’s tone. Hakkim Shah is effective as the investigating officer and lends warmth and volatility in equal measure. Aju Varghese, Pisharody, Abin Bino, and Irshad Ali provide solid support and keep the ensemble lively without slipping into excess.

A notable strength lies in the film’s costume design. With multiple wedding sequences forming a structural motif, Aswathy Jayakumar’s costumes subtly reflect shifts in mood and context. This adds texture without drawing attention to themselves. At just under two hours, 'Pennu Case' remains an agreeable watch. It may not fully exploit the dramatic possibilities of its premise, but it offers light humour, a serviceable mystery, and an interesting gender inversion that feels like a small step away from convention.