Some people never change and it's a deadly mistake to expect anything novel from them. Ivan Maryadaraman, the latest Dileep-starrer penned by hit-making duo Udayakrishna-Sibi K. Thomas has just one thing new– director, Suresh Divakar.
Everything else- the plot, setting, dialogues and the stock of characters- reminds you of a number of films that you watched and enjoyed earlier, though this time around there is least scope for a bellyful laughter.
The plot is so simple that all the complexities the writers have tried to weave look funny to an ordinary viewer. A poor fellow, Raman (Dileep), arrives in a village which had left him orphaned at a tender age, unaware about the machete-wielding villains who wait there for nothing but his blood. He gets trapped in a huge mansion, which is the ancestral home of Narasimhan (Telugu actor Nagineedu) and his sons.
They take the viewers to the good old childhood days when your comics made you believe that mighty tigers and lions were as foolish as they were powerful. Interestingly, the trap becomes his safe zone instead, as the villains believe that shedding blood inside the home will bring them bad luck. As Raman manages to save himself by what is called the great 'machetes escape' the audience get killed by the hackneyed 'tricks'.
Raman meets Krishna (Nikki Gelrani) during a train journey which is likely to remind you of the most tedious trip in your life. The co-passenger of the couple, played by Pashanam Shaji, who has earned fame through comedy shows in Mazhavil Manorama channel, attempts to make the journey live, but the script doesn't support him. By presenting Dileep's character without a usual sidekick, the director shows some courage and 'introduces' a new face, “Hercules”, a talking bicycle. Alas! its voice, rendered by Suraj Venjarammood in his signature 'Thirontharam' slang, does no good to the narrative.
Over the years, we have learned that our directors set films in a typical 'border village' which houses the Gounter-like villain and his all-muscles and no-brain men, whenever they want to tell a tale which tests the audience's common sense. And 'Ivan Maryadaraman' can be easily counted as the latest of that sort. It's true that Dileep has been an ever-favourite among kids and all those have a bit of childishness within them but this time, it's unlikely to work out despite the hero's repeated claim that he loves kids.
While the director should be taught the art of mixing masala in exact amounts, Vijay Ulakanath's cinematography and Girish Menon's art direction need to be mentioned for the rich frames. When everything else is cliched, the music part alone has no way out it seems. The tunes are left inside the hall unwilling to come along with you. Nevertheless, Gopi Sunder should be credited for the theme song which helps the narrative set its tone.
At one point, Raman tells Krishna, who is a research scholar, that he doesn't know anything about PhD. However, it's high time the actor realised he should be done with his ongoing research in playing clichéd roles.
The movie is said to be a remake of Telugu film Maryadaa Ramanna and Bollywood film “Sardar's Son”. It is said that the real origin goes back to Buster Keaton's 1923 silent film, Our Hospitality which I would like to watch now to know what has the modern disciples done to a master like Keaton.