Ivan Maryadaraman Malayalam Movie
'Ivan Maryadaraman', a no-nonsense remake of the 2010 Telugu superhit film 'Maryada Ramanna' seems tailor made for a Siby K Thomas - Udaykrishna film, the scriptwriters who have mastered the art of basing their stories on never ending family feuds. Their latest offing is no different, and places its protagonist right in the midst of one such dispute that has been raging on for the past few decades.
Dileep plays Ramu in the film, who is overjoyed on receiving the news that he has been bestowed with a fortune in a village where his folks once used to be. Off he hops on to a train, meets a lovely lass (Nikki Galrani), the sparks fly and the two fall in love, only to realize soon that love does not always that easily bloom.
I am still unsure as to why the makers had to buy the remake rights from the original film, as this is a story that certainly isn't inventive as it is made to be. Perhaps it's the bicycle in it that prompted it all; as it acts as a narrator in the film, and in 'Ivan Maryadaraman' what makes it special is that it's none other than Suraj Venjarammoodu who has lent his voice over to it.
Apart from this, it's a typical Dileep film that has been scripted by Siby K Thomas and Udaykrishna, and very rarely does it even attempt to move away from the much beaten and laid out tracks that have been laid out before it. Everything in the storyline precisely falls into the slots that have been predictably churned out, and there are certainly no surprises anywhere in sight.
I have had the opportunity to watch the Telugu film as well, and I should say that efforts have been made to tone it down a little bit to the match the Malayali sensibilities. Nevertheless, 'Ivan Maryadaraman' remains a loud film, that at times seems to revel in exaggeration, and is never even for a moment apologetic about it.
There is the anticipatory bail of course that the makers have gone for, by setting up their tale in an 'imaginary village', where the most unseemly of events could of course occur. There is the household of ruffians who wouldn't harm their arch rival for instance, when the latter is inside their house. The moment he would step out, he will be slain without a second thought.
And it's here that Ramu strives hard not to get his head bumped off, while the rest of them pull out every arrow in their armour to pin him down. It's a cat and mouse game that ensues, that has nothing new to offer, except for some stale old instances that we have witnessed time and again in films as these.
Dileep, as expected fits into the role of Ramu with ease, and goes about his job with such remarkable effortlessness, that it almost seems like he must have been on a vacation while the shoot was on. Nikki Galrani looks sweet, but lacks the charm that made Saloni Aswani appear special in 'Maryada Ramanna'.
Measure it by any yardstick, and I'd still maintain that 'Ivan Maryadaraman' is certainly not my cup of tea. For that matter, neither is the Telugu original that it blatantly admits to have been inspired from.
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