Saturday Mar 07 2009, Trivandrum

The Mohanlal Effect!!

Mohanlal has once again proved that he is the undisputed champion of Mollywood B.O. 'Red Chillies',directed by Shaji Kailas, has reportedly collected a whopping Rs 1.5 crore in the first 10 days of its release. Click on, for the Top 5 stars of Malayalam B.O. this week!

1. Mohanlal

Shaji Kailas has done it again. Almost like a magician, he pulls out a blockbuster from a wafer thin script written by A.K. Sajan.

The film, 'Red Chillies', obviously inspired from the Hollywood movie, 'Kiss the Girls', is making waves at theatres all over Kerala despite a pathetic script.

The director deftly covers up the weak points with technical finesse and a clever suspense. He plays up to the fan legions of Lal by projecting the superstar as a superman yet gain.

Except for Biju Menon and Thilakan, no actor could survive in the blinding presence of the superstar.

'Red Chillies' has collected a whopping Rs 1.5 crore in the first 10 days of its release.

2. Jagathy Sreekumar

After almost a decade, Venu Nagavally wields the megaphone again for 'Bharya, Swatham Suhruthu'. He teams up with scenarist Cherian Kalpakavadi to make a stale, predictable movie.

Jagathy Sreekumar wastes a great opportunity to showcase his acting skills and his effort is just ordinary. Still, he makes the film bearable to an extent. The same is the case with Urvashi. Mukesh, Padmapriya and Jyothirmayee have nothing great in the film to write home about.

Of course, there are a few good moments worth a few laughs. As one can imagine, the film ends by extolling the virtues of the institution, family.

3. Vineeth Sreenivasan

It seems, it is the turn of the son to poke fun at Malayalis. In 'Makante Achchan', Vineeth teams up with his father Sreenivasan to present an age old story in an all new get up.

There is nothing new in the film directed by VM Vinu, except the way the son makes it to the victory stand: He wins a reality show for aspiring singers! If this is the way sons would make their fathers famous, God can only save them!

The father-son duo does nothing special in the acting front and Jagathy Sreekumar delivers yet another stock performance. Thilakan shows his worth even in a caricature of a role. A quality actress, Suhasini is wasted in the role of the all suffering mother, a bit too weepy for being credible.

At Kozhikode, the film has collected Rs 23.47 lakh in 36 days.

4. Kalabhavan Mani

'Ayirathil Oruvan', directed by Sibi Malayil, was made in 2002 and got released only last week. The six long years have taken their toll, it seems. The film looks ancient and is out of sync with the times.

The film may remind one of old Sathyan Anthikkadu hits such as 'TP Balagopalan MA'. Kalabhavan Mani plays a ration shop owner burdened with innumerable family and financial problems. Kalabhavan Mani, though tries his best, fails in making his character look believable as too much melodrama comes in between.

Sujitha, KPAC Lalitha, Thilakan, Oduvil Unnikrishnan, Sudheesh and Tamil actor Senthil have too brief roles to make an impact.

5. Sreenivasan

The title, 'Kadha Samvidhanam Kunchacko', is impressive; but its content is not! In the film directed by Haridas Kesavan, Sreenivasan plays a wealthy bachelor, a bit ruthless in his methods to amass wealth.

Sreenivasan parodies his own mannerisms with seeming disinterest; the supporting cast, including Meena, is there to provide the usual fare of buffoonery with the label, comedy.

It may baffle one how Sreenivasan, a passable scenarist, gave his consent to act in such a poorly, conceived film.

Source: FS Desk