Padayottam Review: A complete laugh riot

Malayalam cinema has had very few black comedies and ‘Padayottam’ is the latest entrant to that list. The movie is directed by debutant Rafeek Ibrahim and scripted by Arun AR and Ajai Rahul. Biju Menon, Dileesh Pothan, Saiju Kurup, Sudhi Koppa and Basil Joseph play the lead roles. Let’s jump straight to the review to see what the movie has to offer.

Padayottam is a travel-comedy that is centred around an eventful journey from Trivandrum to Kasargod. Pinku (Basil Joseph), Senan (Dileesh Pothan), Sree (Saiju Kurup) and Renju (Sudhi Koppa) are four thick friends who live in the Chenkalchoola colony in Trivandrum. Pinku is the problem-creator amomg them and one of his acts force the other three to travel to Kasargod. Senan and gang seek the help of Chenkal Reghu (Biju Menon), an influential gangster in the locality. The fun-filled moments that occur during their journey form the rest of the movie.

Though the plot is wafer-thin, it is such moments and lively performances that make the movie engaging. The script written by Arun AR and Ajai Rahul has one joke followed by another and it keeps the audience in splits most of the run-time. Director Rafeek Ibrahim has done a commendable job in effectively translating what’s written on paper. It is not easy to direct a movie that has such utter chaos but he has maintained a clarity throughout.

Padayottam is not an entirely flawless movie but most of the shortcomings are forgivable for the outright entertainment that it offers. One can easily say that the performances of the lead cast lift the movie to another level. Biju Menon as Chenkal Raju once again proves his ability to switch effortlessly between a mass and fun character. He has worked hard on getting the Trivandrum dialect right and its hilarious whenever he helplessly says ‘oh thenju’. Most impressive among the lot was Basil Joseph and Sudhi Koppa. Dileesh Pothan, Saiju Kurup, Hareesh Kanaran and Lijo Jose Pellissery were also good in their respective roles.

Overall, Padayottam is a full on fun entertainer that offers two hours of thorough laughter.