Kallanum Bhagavathiyum review: A formula-based fairytale with an outdated story

Box office success for fantasy movies is a huge gamble. People aren’t always excited about this genre. In Malayalam itself, fewer movies have fared in this category; the last being director Lijo Jose Pellissery’s Amen (2013).

And now, Kallanum Bhagavathiyum (The Thief & The Goddess) is all set to try its luck at the box office today, 31 March.

As the name suggests, Kallanum Bhagavathiyum is the story of a small-time thief named Mathappan (Vishnu Unnikrishnan) and a goddess who comes home along with him. The story is set in a village in the Palakkad district.

Mathappan hails from a poor family and has a backstory of how he lost his parents and has since been living alone. He is never successful in robberies but is unpopular in his village.

Priyamani (Anusree) is ready to sleep with a rich man in her village as she needs money to treat her ailing mother.

Meanwhile, vexed with his life, Mathappan decides to attempt one final robbery and commit suicide if he fails in it. As expected, he fails. So, he decides to kill himself.

That’s when Priyamani dares him to steal the idol of the goddess from an old temple and sell it to make money.

As Mathappan is about to drown with the idol, Bhagavathy (Moksha) saves him and visits his home. But only he can see the goddess.

Mathappan’s life takes a turn from that day. What happens next is what the film is all about.

An outdated plot

Kallanum Bhagavathiyum has an outdated plot similar to that of television serials.

It is the third movie of East Coast Vijayan, a businessman who is yet to prove himself as a director.

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Through this movie, he tries hard to push the message of equality and freedom to worship. He seems to have plans to make another Mookuthi Amman (a Tamil movie released in 2020) but failed miserably.

A female lead like Priyamani was a rage in the 80s and early 90s but not anymore. At times when women are reaching new heights with their hard work, it’s ridiculous to see how her role has been designed.

Formula-based movie

Kallanum Bhagavathiyum is made with a format that is set before the shooting. Romance, comedy, fantasy, divine power, and devotional songs are some of the factors that are included in it.

The title song is a choir featuring Salim Kumar as the priest. A talented artist is thus wasted in an irrelevant scene.

Mala Parvathy, who plays the mother of Priyamani, is bedridden for many years. One fine day, as a result of prayers, she walks without any problem. These kinds of magics in mainstream films are usually based on a format.

There was a time when devotional films caught the fancy of audiences. But those films were all made of good quality which Kallanum Bhagavathiyum evidently lacks.

The performances

Even though Vishnu Unnikrishnan tries his best to do justice to Mathappan’s role, the story doesn’t offer anything new and good.

Anusree as Priyamani is not at all convincing. It must be remembered that she acted well in Ithihasa, a Malayalam fantasy movie released in 2014.

Moksha is good-looking with fancy jewellery and sarees. But she has nothing much to perform as she mostly delivers monologues. The dialogues she utters rarely are too dramatic.

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Vallabhan (Rajesh Madhav), a fellow thief of Mathappan, is a saving face. His comic moments with Johny Antony’s character of the priest are good to an extent.

The movie has many devotional songs composed by Ranjin Raj who earlier composed the music for Malikappuram (2022). The songs are good but are placed haphazardly in the story. As a result, Kallanum Bhagavathiyum loses its substance.

Verdict

Kallanum Bhagavathiyum has an outdated story backed with fantasy elements that fail to deliver entertainment value. The movie has devotional songs that are aimed to woo the family audience though.

(Views expressed are personal.)