153. Varane Avashyamund; movie review

VARANE AVASHYAMUND
Cert 12A
145 mins
BBFC advice: Contains brief moderate violence

I can't recall the last time a film grew on me quite as much as Varane Avashyamund.
Based on its first hour, I wouldn't have rated any higher than 4/10 but as it wore on I became unexpectedly immersed in its characters.
Anoop Sathyan's movie is akin to a mini soap opera, centred on a few neighbouring apartments in Chennai.
The residents live so closely they cannot help but know each other's business or even fall in love.
So, an unlikely romance is in the air... between a 50-something divorced mother (Shobhana Chandrakumar Pillai) and a retired army major (Suresh Gopi).
Yes, usually, two Indian movie veterans are actually playing characters of their own age who take tentative steps towards courtship.
It isn't an easy path. The major is taking anger management lessons and is known in the community for his sharp tongue when he is not keeping himself to himself.
Meanwhile, his neighbour may seem outwardly assured but is having a difficult time with her grown-up daughter (Kalyani Priyadarshan) who is desperate to be married.
It may not seem a particularly intoxicating premise but a great cast and Sathyan's deft direction lure the audience in.
I was particularly taken with Gopi and Shobhana - their characters' shyness but growing fondness for each other was convincing and compelling - indeed, I was willing them to get together.
Meanwhile, Priyadarshan starts off impishly but mellows nicely as the movie progresses.
And then there is the biggest current star, Dulquer Salmaan, who has a relatively low-key role as a flat resident who looks after his much younger brother.
He has an eye for Priyadarshan but, like his much older neighbour, is slow in expressing his feelings.
Such simmering love stories are not usually my bag but Varane Avashyamund is also a cultural experience, bringing its audience into a middle-class India where the characters are trapped between tradition and a modern environment.
And the gradual peeling of its layers exposes their unexpected backgrounds.
It felt like a warm blanket on a cool evening and culminates in a lovely little wink at the camera with its last gesture.

Reasons to watch: Easy going neighbourhood comedy
Reasons to avoid: Jumps around too much

Laughs: None for me
Jumps: None
Vomit: None
Nudity: None
Overall rating: 7.5/10

Did you know? Shobana has starred in 230 movies and won the National Film Award for Best Actress twice for her performances in the Malayalam film Manichitrathazhu (1993) and the English film Mitr, My Friend (2001).

The final word. Dulquer Salmaan: "It’s a feel-good film with likeable characters and when I heard the idea for the first time it was so intriguing that I wanted to produce the film. I was not supposed to act in the film, but the more I heard about it, the more the film called out to me."

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