The movie 'Veyil' directed by Sarath and starring Shane Nigam in the lead is an emotional roller-coaster exploring familial bonds and innocent romance. The movie stands out in all the departments including the narrative style, performance, music, cinematography and so on, but the extra-large tail-end seems to upend the whole dramatic purpose.
As a realistic take on the travails of a lower middle-class family striving to escape the muddy waters of misery 'Veyil' may prod the sensibilities of the common people.
The saga opens with Sidharth (Shane Nigam) as a school-going teenager with the least interest in studies. He has a love interest in Sruthi (Sona Olickal) and the romance gets ignited after some initial hiccups. Meanwhile, Sidharth finds life miserable at home with an ever-nagging mother, shouting at each of his faults. Though his relationship with his brother Karthik (Saed Imran) is cordial the latter's intellect and better academic performance play a foil to Sidhrath's educational and emotional incompetence.
Eventually, he is hurtled into a turbid posture as he faces certain unpleasant situations. Fate also drives him to connect with the henchmen of a political leader and get involved with their activities. How Sidharth endures the whole cycle of events and withstands the crises in his life is the story all about. The movie thrives on simple, multi-layered plot exploring varying situations and emotional realms.
The performance of artists is definitely the highlight of the movie. Each one of the actors excels in portraying the characters and their histrionics with a realistic prison. While Shane Nigam gets into the skin of the character Sreerekhaa as Sidharth's mother Radha marks a portrayal that is outstanding. So is Saed Imran, Sona Olickal, James Elia as Baby Mathew, Merin Jose Pottackal as Merin, Shine Tom Chacko as Jomy Mathew and Sudhi Koppa.
The cinematography of Shaz Mohammed ensures that the movie doesn't lose the warmth and the hues of the drama and the music by Pradeep Kumar is delightful.
Sustaining scenes and visuals may enhance the aesthetic heft of a movie but when it gets too far and too lengthy it can go overboard and mar the beauty the narrative has gained thus far. 'Veyil' too suffers the same backlash. The extended drag pulls it back from being a masterpiece and cuts it down to a moderate flick.