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.