Vala Review | A Hammy Film With an Underwritten Script and Unsubtle Politics

The major breakthrough for writer Harshad occurred in 2019 with the release of his film Unda, directed by Khalid Rahman. Even though Khalid Rahman had said that he had to make compromises towards the climax of that film, Unda was still an effective critique of the system. In 2022, Harshad’s next film, Puzhu, was released. It had a strong plot that talked about the deeply ingrained casteist mentality in society. But in that movie, there was this subplot about the Islamophobic mentality of the hero, and it really stood out like an unnecessary addition and got a lot of flak. Harshad’s next film was Basil Joseph-starrer Kadina Kadoramee Andakadaham, and it was his first collaboration with Muhashin. While that movie had this emotionally heavy Story idea set against the backdrop of COVID, there was this one-sided blaming of the system, which made it problematic. The latest Malayalam film Vala: The Story of a Bangle is Harshad’s new movie and his second collaboration with Muhshin. While it may look like a battle of ego from the outside, the movie is actually a sad sight of a promising writer losing his ability to say politics subtly.

Police officer Banu Prakash is going through a tough time. His wife, Vishalakshi, had a tussle with a woman named Sarala, who works in the Akshaya Center. It was about a stunning-looking bangle that Sarala had, and now Vishalakashi wants a bangle similar to that. The interesting turn of events that unfold in this ego war over a bangle is what we see in Muhashin’s Vala.

I do believe in the idea that every statement or artwork has its own politics. But when it comes to art, especially something like cinema, it is not about making a statement. It is about how effectively you say that. If I am not mistaken, Harshad’s efforts this time are to focus on the stories of those who lost everything during the Nadapuram riots. And this whole Vala thing is just a setup to take the Story to that event. While it does make sense that such stories should be brought to the limelight, the sad part is the absence of craft. Certain parts of the movie are over-romanticized. There are patches that look very caricaturish, and when it comes to the main Story, it is melodramatic, and most of it is just done for the sake of documenting. This, being all over the place, kind of structuring of the screenplay is what makes this movie underwhelming when you decide to look at it purely from a cinematic point of view.

The beginning of the rage of the four key characters is unconvincing. Vishalakshi and Sarala’s ego clash at the Akshaya center, the out-of-the-blue action in the interval block, etc., just doesn’t gel with the movie. What they ultimately want to tell is about a bangle that belonged to someone else. However, these eccentric shifts and caricaturish portrayals of bad people give the movie the vibe of a triggering YouTube video. There were several movies of Priyadarshan and T Damodaran in the past that got criticized in recent times for the way they showed the privileged upper cast as victims. And if you are trying to demonize the upper cast to balance it out by showing them as senseless without subtlety, I feel the discourse won’t lead to a healthy result, but rather add more fuel to the fire.

Lukman, as Banu Prasad tries his best to show the rage and helplessness of the character. But the writing of the character is so uneven that the shifts in the mood of that character are unpredictable, and it is difficult to root for him. Debutant Sheethal Joseph has an impressive screen presence. But again, that character’s anger and discomfort are written in a sloppy way. Even though the character is supposed to be unlikable, it was actually the deliberate way of making that character insensitive on a surface level that was making people dislike her. The duo of Dhyan Sreenivasan and Raveena Ravi is supposed to be negative, and the screenplay sort of makes them excessively comical on screen. The role of Soopika is not a challenging one for Vijayaraghavan, and he pretty much sleepwalks through that Beta Ustad Hotel role. Shanthi Krishna, Abu Salim, Navas Vallikkunnu, etc., are the other names in the cast, along with an extended cameo-like role from Arjun Radhakrishnan and a surprisingly good performance from music director Govind Vasantha. His signature style scores in the second half flashback portions are really helping the movie to have the feel factor, which was unfortunately not there in the writing.

Vala is a movie that wants to be political, and at the same time, it is trying to have the appearance of being a commercial entertainer. The switching that happens between these two modes of the movie is abrupt. Like, there is a fight scene in the market between Dhyan and Lukman, and the setup for that scene is done by making Lukman’s character an absolute idiot. If you look at what happens at the end with the bangle, it is pretty evident that this was a Story that could have been a brilliant short film without even showing those tacky visual effects of fire. However, this movie, which lingers on scenes for more than the time required, is not much bothered about the audience reaction. When people like Vetrimaaran and Maari Selvaraj make movies, we get those narratable compelling stories in which politics becomes a part. Here, the placement of that Story is unimpressive as it is crammed inside two pointless ego fights, and the politics sticks out like a sore thumb.