Swargam Movie Review

Subtle innocence is the striking facet of this tale set in a scenic countryside and rightly, the events in 'Swargam' are being navigated far from an intense conflict zone. Director Rejis Antony showcases perspectives of two neighbouring families on life by highlighting the so-called nostalgic as well as virtuous rustic milieu as the premise of this simple flick. The two families belong to different social strata and apparently, there is a stark contrast in their lifestyle. The screenplay penned by Rejis Antony, Lizy K Fernandez and Rose Rejis, revolves around their routines altogether. It is an irony that in a remote village, Maliyekkal Vakkachan, played by Johny Antony, is living in his palatial house with the aid of sophisticated gizmos including a remote-controlled gate and a robotic chef.

Rejis neatly reveals the typical snobbery of Vakkachan, who quite often advises petty shop owner Padinjareparambil Josutty, played by Aju Varghese, to buy a posh car after abandoning his old jeep. In presenting the subtle detailing of the nuances of characters, 'Swargam' shows good potential in the beginning, yet its conflict zone is too fragile. Though the writers succeed in their effort in the process of characterization, the film lacks a solid content despite its attempt to emerge as a purely feel-good affair. An underlying disharmony is palpable in the relationship between the elite couple Vakkachan and wife Aniyamma, enacted by Manju Pillai. Their neighbour Josutty's family including his wife Sicily, essayed by Ananya, and children are leading a peaceful and happy life. The simple and jovial life of Josutty and family makes Aniyamma, who used to monitor them using binoculars through the window of her house, wistful about a stress-free life.

Here, we have two families-one leads an organic life while the other is obsessed with a haute modern life. Josutty is a farmer too and his family joins him in agriculture. Aniyamma finds it hard to reconcile with the sophisticated lifestyle of Vakkachan, who has abandoned his mother in a luxury old age home. 'Swargam' also brings forth the discord between parents and children. The incident related to Nimmy George Kulathungal (Manjadi Joby), daughter of George Kulthathungal (Vineeth Thattil), shows Josutty's candid relationship with his son Christo (Surya).

Through the characters of George Kulthathungal and Vakkachan, the sagging bonding among parents and children becomes a topic in the plot. Still, the movie hesitates in exploring its theme in detail other than prattling on the uneventful sequences in the families. Aniyamma is the sole effective character in 'Swargam' with Manju lending much-needed originality to make the character a pivotal part of the movie. She is a homemaker, who is wary of her hubby's flaunting lifestyle, but shows a certain degree of dignity, besides possessing a creative mindset. The character gives the feel of a standalone figure in the tale and Manju has given apt embellishment to it as a performer.

Aju Varghese finds himself in his comfort zone as a duty-bound family man and the script scarcely provides him the room to explore the emotional depth of the character. Again, it is a cakewalk for Johny Antony also when the film's plain proceedings keep a steady line till the end. The good intention of conveying a message can be sensed in 'Swargam' but the conflict-free attempt backfires most of the time. The visuals of S. Saravanan nicely blend with the film that has a duration of barely two hours. As a feel-good family drama, 'Swargam' has got everything right except a coherent plot and an effective conflict. The narration of this rustic tale is hardly compelling owing to a simple and uneventful script that ignores the vital elements of film writing.