Uma Rao

A brilliant period film, very well taken, carrying one back to that era and the unmentionable injustices meted out then. A huge pat on the back to Siju Wilson for his stellar performance, for having emoted the key character to the minutest perfection. A big shout out to all the actors for having done their roles excellently. A special note of appreciation for the background score and the music , absolutely befitting the period and the slice of history that comes alive on the screen. Finally, of course congratulations and a big, big thank you to director Vinayan for this beautiful movie and for all the efforts and ground work that went into making this movie.

Moothon, literally meaning ‘the elder one” is a brilliant, sitting-on-the-edge film, written and directed by Geethu Mohandas. the film depicts the dark, gruesome, gory belly of the underworld in the city of Mumbai, but which could be read, visualized or related with any similar city. There are no soft contours or dimensions to this story as it hurls us from one bestial face of hell to another and another all in quick succession. The opening scenes depicting the idyllic serenity of the Lakshadweep island, the simple, unhurried pace of the island is in sharp contrast to the gnawing pangs of young Mulla, his desperation to search and get reunited with his beloved Moothon, who for Mulla means the ultimate solution to all his distress of being alone. The fury of the sea, as Mulla battles alone in a makeshift raft across the waters to the shores of Mumbai with just a phone number scribbled in a bit of paper that would supposedly lead him to his Moothon, seems mild compared to the onslaught of the terrifying dimensions of the alleys and lanes of Kamathipura and its neighbouring areas. The horrid reality of the “homes’ for street children where the “care-givers” turn sadistic takers of vicious pleasures, briefly reveal the gang culture of the numerous, homeless children who after the initial measuring of the newcomer Mulla, rally to protect Mulla from the clutches of the warden. Mulla’s escape from this place, the meeting with Rosy of Kanmathipura, the mother of one of the children of the home, the struggle to communicate his purpose, his assimilation of the life there, the clashes with the hardened boys of the area who spare no occasion to taunt and trouble the “infiltrator” , their acceptance of Mulla, as is universally wont with all children, who find their own comfort zones in the midst of the terror and ferocity of the backstreets, the dread and fear mirrored in Mulla’s countenance in the face to face meeting with the underworld Bhai, Bhai’s partner Salim, the terrifying process of “taming”, read “hardening” of the “wild” read “innocent” Mulla reveals some absolutely stellar performances of all the actors, which have been shot with perfect brilliance. The story line and flawless direction by Geethu Mohandas matches the astounding photography by Rajeev Ravi for the brutally honest revelation of the dark, shadowy by-lanes, the scary, dingy shops and shutters, the harsh vicious circle of drugs, the peddlers, the mafia and the raw thirst and desire to live, come what may of the several lesser humans caught in this inescapable net.