Nila Movie Review: Shanthi Krishna bolsters an empowerment tale

It helps that a single-setting film where the aged protagonist is bedridden throughout has a 90-min runtime. It helps that one of Malayalam cinema's perceptive and effortless acting veterans, Shanthi Krishna, plays Malathy, the central character in Nila, a film which I went into expecting to be depressed -- you know, considering the above reasons -- but turned out to be quite empowering, even when the circumstances point toward a seemingly inevitable outcome that generates melancholic feelings

Director: Indu Lakshmi

Cast: Shanthi Krishna, Vineeth, Mamukoya, Mini IG


The heroine -- and I use this word because Dr Malathy, a gynaecologist, sees herself as one for all the right reasons -- refuses to let this sudden setback, a spinal injury, cripple her spirit. Nila toys with the idea that there could be two reasons behind this incident. Malathy talks of a mysterious intruder in the night; her son, Mahi (Vineeth), on the other hand, tells people she slipped and fell when it rained.

To what genre does it belong? A mystery drama is more like it, owing more to whether Malathy is really having the conversations with a new friend she just made out of a neighbour, a young woman whom we don't see but can only hear, or whether the latter really exists. The conversation scenes are essentially Mathilukal-type situations, except for, of course, the matter of this 'friend' being audible only to the older woman but not the other characters.

And since Nila is the fourth film to come out of the Kerala government initiative to empower women filmmakers, it's not a surprise to expect the story to not only provide a jolt of inspiration to those watching it -- the resilient attitude of its protagonist should do that -- but also through some of the 'empowering' wisdom she imparts on the younger woman.

Thankfully, there is no attempt to deliver it in a forcefully preachy manner. It simply becomes part of this conversation between the two women. When the younger woman confesses to Malathy that she eloped with her man and recounts instances of marital abuse, the latter isn't judgemental. She is empathetic towards her plight, as all doctors should be, and explains that it's absurd to think that a man abuses his partner "out of love".

And Shanthi Krishna owns this part with much verve, finesse, and control. Malathy is a woman who acknowledges her predicament but also wants to do something productive despite it. She listens to music, reads, and, of course, engages in conversation with whoever she meets, including the cold and unreceptive home nurse (played by filmmaker Mini IG). Interestingly, Vineeth, despite being only a few years younger than Shanti Krishna, plays the son with much conviction, and so does Shanthi Krishna in the role of the quintessential caring Indian mother.

Directed by Indu Lakshmi, the film's strengths also come from the art (Jithin Babu Mannur) and camera (Rakesh Dharan) departments, whose combined talents give one a strong sense of the space and atmosphere that Malathi occupies.  Aside from Mathilukal, if you find yourself thinking of MT Vasudevan Nair, you are right. The celebrated author and filmmaker is even mentioned during a particular instance in the film. As for the overall mood, the film's style revokes the serious-minded acclaimed Malayalam films with slightly stagey dialogues from the 90s, like those we found in the early films of Shyamaprasad or MT Vasudevan Nair. But I wouldn't dismissively use that aspect because Nila is a decent effort -- all things considered.