Ok. My apologies. No Bachchan today.
Try Venjaramoodu instead.
For those unfamiliar with this tongue-twister of a name, you should see more Malayalam cinema. Suraj is his first name, and much like the rising sun, Venjaramoodu shines throughout all the movies that he stars in – subtle, understated, yet an essential ingredient without which the film would not be anywhere close to the same.
Today, I happened to see Kaanekkaane (it’s on Sony Liv) – a moving story about human emotions, and the power of forgiveness.
While the movie was not perfect, it was far above any similar attempt that hypothetically could have been made in any other language (maybe Bengali would come close). The mallus have long perfected the art of subtlety (in movies at least) and so even extreme emotions are not voiced out in over-the-top language and expressions. For that, do reach out to mass Tamil or Telegu cinema:)
For other movies by Suraj, try out Android Kunjappan Version 5.25 and Vikruthi, or even Driving License. The first two were with Soubin Shahir as a co-actor (another gem) and Driving License with Prithviraj (try Ayyappanum Koshiyum). That’s a good list for the next two weekends.
श्रीभगवानुवाच |
अभयं सत्त्वसंशुद्धिर्ज्ञानयोगव्यवस्थिति: |
दानं दमश्च यज्ञश्च स्वाध्यायस्तप आर्जवम् || 1||
अहिंसा सत्यमक्रोधस्त्याग: शान्तिरपैशुनम् |
दया भूतेष्वलोलुप्त्वं मार्दवं ह्रीरचापलम् || 2||
तेज: क्षमा धृति: शौचमद्रोहोनातिमानिता |
भवन्ति सम्पदं दैवीमभिजातस्य भारत || 3||
śhrī-bhagavān uvācha
abhayaṁ sattva-sanśhuddhir jñāna-yoga-vyavasthitiḥ
dānaṁ damaśh cha yajñaśh cha svādhyāyas tapa ārjavam
ahinsā satyam akrodhas tyāgaḥ śhāntir apaiśhunam
dayā bhūteṣhv aloluptvaṁ mārdavaṁ hrīr achāpalam
tejaḥ kṣhamā dhṛitiḥ śhaucham adroho nāti-mānitā
bhavanti sampadaṁ daivīm abhijātasya bhārata
Sri Krishna said: O scion of Bharat, these are the saintly virtues of those endowed with a divine nature—fearlessness, purity of mind, steadfastness in spiritual knowledge, charity, control of the senses, sacrifice, study of the sacred books, austerity, and straightforwardness; non-violence, truthfulness, absence of anger, renunciation, peacefulness, restraint from fault-finding, compassion toward all living beings, absence of covetousness, gentleness, modesty, and lack of fickleness; vigor, forgiveness, fortitude, cleanliness, bearing enmity toward none, and absence of vanity.