Aparna Balamurali's 'Ini Utharam' review: Exploring many sides of vengeance

An intricate web of crime and suspense, 'Ini Utharam', written by Ranjith Unni and directed by Sudheeesh Ramachandran will absorb you completely. The dexterously driven twists all along the narrative will arrest your attention in a story pivoting a case of mysterious killings in a remote high range village.

The story gets onto track with Janaki (Aparna Balamurali) dropping in at a police station at Shantanpara hill range and coffessing to have committed a murder. Though the police personnel there seeks details she remains adamant to meet Circle Inspector Karunan (Kalabhavan Shajohn), who was not present at that moment, to divulge more about the crime.

When the CI faces Janaki ultimately, he downplays her claims as mere rubbish blabbering of a mentally unstable woman and refuses to probe the matter. However, with the entry of media into the scene the police official has no other way but to initiate an investigation and search for the body at the spot where Janaki claims to have buried it. CI Karunan is already a speck in the eye of the natives of Shanthanpara for his vicious activities and wild attitude.

Under the full glare of the public and media, the police make efforts to dig out the body that Janaki claimed to have buried. Now, Janaki makes some statements at the spot that puts the police in a fix before the violent and enraged local people. It's then the Idukki SP (Harish Uthaman) is called in to quell the mob and bring the situation under control. But then the real turmoil for CI Karunan begins.

What's noteworthy about the movie is the uniformity of the tone of the subject throughout the film and the artistry in treatment of sequences, whether it's dialogues or the actions. Even the songs and subtle comic elements in the plot are so skillfully woven into the main fabric that they never disturb the central theme of the story.

However, the background again, plays the villain at times that one might even joke that, 'the characters in the movie were not able to hear each other calling out aloud because of the BGM.' But those are minor flubs which can be overlooked. The tale is an enjoyable thriller that has evolved brilliantly.

Aparna Balamurali has been pitch perfect as a daring, yet naive Janaki. But it's Harish Uthaman who steals the show as a mysterious cop who is hard to be tagged as either good or evil till the climax. Kalabhavan Shajohn too presents a mesmerising performance, though the kind of character he has portrayed here is nothing new.

Siddique, Jayan Cherthala, Shaju, Siddharth Menon, Jaffer Idukki, Chandunath, all of them form the ensemble cast of the movie with their electrifying show of talents. While Ravichandran's camera has captured the mesmerising beauty of the mist and hues of the locales as well as the suspense and heat of the drama, Hesham Abdul Wahab's songs stroke romance. The movie is produced by Varun and Arun under the banner A & V Entertainments.

The movie, 'Ini Utharam' with the tagline 'Every Answer has a Question' concludes in an anti-climax fashion leaving the conundrum for the audience to solve. This might be baffling while leaving the theatres but with a strong plot and an enchanting storyline and even a message 'Ini Utharam' exploring many sides of vengeance stands out as a simple, watchable movie, that is worth your time.