Athiran:
A psychological thriller that is visually stunning
By
Mythily Ramachandran
It is a shocking sight for Lakshmi (Shanthi Krishna)
when she walks into her house to find her family members dead-her three
brothers and her sister-in-law lie dead under unnatural circumstances. Strangely,
unaffected by everything, her autistic niece Nitya is sitting in a corner
playing with a strand of string.
Switching between the past and the present debutant director
Vivek narrates a psychological thriller. Athiran’s strength lies in the staging
of the story with idyllic visuals captured brilliantly by cinematographer Anu
Moothedath. Right from the opening scene, there is drama and a novelty in every
frame.
Pillion riding on the lens of cinematographer Anu Moothedath,
viewers follow Dr. M.K. Nair (Fahad Faasil)- a psychiatrist from Trivandrum
Medical College on his journey. Nair arrives at a picturesque mansion
reminiscent of the Victorian age-standing isolated and an enigma in the midst
of a verdant region. This is a home for
the mentally afflicted and managed by Dr. Benjamin Diaz (Atul Kulkarni).
Dr. Nair, has been deputed to probe into Dr.
Benjamin’s treatment of his patients. Despite the implicit beauty of the
surroundings and the classically decorated interiors there is a queer air about
this hospital that caters to the very rich who have abandoned here, a family
member for losing his/her sanity.
Dr. Nair’s investigation reveals that besides the
five patients listed in the register, there is a young autistic woman, Nitya
(Sai Pallavi) bound in chains and confined in a dark room. It now becomes his mission to free Nitya.
The cast includes a host of talent-Leona Lishoy
playing a patient who walks around in a nun’s habit and speaks verses from the
Bible-Kerala state awardees Sudev Nair- as a young man in love with Nitya- and
Surabhi Lakshmi -as a patient who is concerned over Nitya.
The story belongs to Fahad Faasil and Sai Pallavi. This is a role Faasil can sleep walk into. Sai Pallavi’s Nitya is a complete contrast to her debut role of Malar from ‘Premam.’ With hardly any dialogues, Pallavi brings to the fore an autistic woman’s plight. And, she does it without going overboard. Renji Panicker as Nitya’s father brings poignant moments.
Vivek who earlier worked as creative producer with MTV India and Walt Disney has not assisted any director nor attended any film school. He shows promise on his debut.
Playing the perfect tango to his vision is
cinematographer Anu Moothedath’s frames. Sometimes bewitching viewers with
Nature’s moments-a line of ants crawl carrying leaves-Moothedath takes you
indoors into Dr. Benjamin’s mansion with its elegant interiors-a bull head
staring from the wall while a black cat with glowing eyes silently watches Dr.
Nair being ushered in. Great attention
has gone into detailing every scene.
Ghibran’s music adds to the sense of foreboding in the story-soft and
ominous especially in the night sequences. Some loose ends mar ‘Athiran’ from
becoming a much better film. It’s the reveal in the climax that holds up
‘Athiran,’ as an interesting thriller.
