Uyare Review: Parvathy is outstanding in this inspiring film!

Debutant director Manu Ashokan’s ‘Uyare’ starring Parvathy, Asif Ali and Tovino Thomas in the lead roles has hit screens today. Bobby and Sanjay have scripted the film. Three new producers Shenuga Shegna and Sherga are backing it under the banner of S Cube Films.

‘Uyare’ is the story of Pallavi Raveendran, an ambitious young woman who overcomes certain obstacles in her life to achieve a dream that she has been nurturing from childhood. Pallavi’s dream is to fly, both literally and figuratively. Her ambition of becoming a pilot is shattered halfway after she encounters an acid attack. ‘Uyare’ is basically the tale of how the brave Pallavi manages to surmount the trauma and eventually lead an inspiring life.

Bobby and Sanjay, the National award winning writer duo, are well known for churning out unique storylines. With ‘Uyare’, the message they want to convey is simple yet very meaningful. In 90% of the acid attack cases in the country, the accused is someone very close to the victim. The only intention behind an acid attack is to disfigure the victim’s face and this comes from the mentality that beauty is all about physical looks. ‘Uyare’ stresses on the fact that it’s not the physical appearance that defines a person.

On a firm foundation, the writers have built real complex characters with unique traits of their own. We’re shown how chauvinism and patriarchal mindset in an abusive relationship leads to something drastic. It is this progressive politics that makes ‘Uyare’ a very relevant film. Extensive research has gone behind this film, and that has reflected in the overall output.

Director Manu Ashokan shows no signs of a debutant as extracts the best out of his actors and technicians. Quite a few cinematic liberties have been taken but it has been ensured that they are convincingly presented on screen. A thrilling sequence in the aircraft is brilliantly shot and it’s one of the highlights of the film. On the downside, the acid attack portion and the scenes that follow lacked the required intensity. Despite being an extremely crucial moment, it turned out to be very ordinary and failed to invoke the emotions at that point.

Technically, ‘Uyare’ is a sound film with Mukesh Muraleedharan’s impressive cinematography and Mahesh Narayanan’s skilled editing. Unlike other regular films, make up has great importance here and the prosthetics team deserve appreciation. They have worked so meticulously that one can note the change in Parvathy’s facial make-up at various stages of her recovery. Gopi Sunder’s music in ‘Uyare’ has to be his work in recent times. The songs that are deftly laced around the narrative helps to convey the emotions very effectively.

Coming to the performances, as expected, Parvathy is remarkable. The actress has imbibed the character so well that there’s hardly a moment she looked out of place. Her famed ability to get into the skin of a character is on show once again. Be it Pallavi’s vigor and passion for flying or the vulnerability with her partner or the state of trauma that she goes through post the acid attack, Parvathy is nothing but exceptional.

Asif Ali is often dubbed as the ‘angry young man of Mollywood’ and his character Govind in ‘Uyare’ also comes out of the same mould, but just that it’s more complex. Govind is possessive and carries with him a lot of insecurities. Asif has proved why he is the perfect choice to play such a character.

On the other hand, Tovino’s character Vishal is diametrically opposite as he is charming and instantly likeable. He fits the bill perfectly and his portions with Parvathy were delightful. Siddique has a meaty role to play in the movie and the veteran delivers a restrained yet powerful performance. Another notable performance comes from Anarkali of ‘Aanandam’ fame.

Overall, ‘Uyare’ is an earnestly inspiring film with plenty of emotions and excellent performances. It’s certain to invoke some tears and goosebumps.