It's not easy, neither is it poetic or surreal. In director Shanavas Bavakutty's mindscape, love isn't as magical, especially when lines of caste and religion are drawn between the lovers, who have troubles staying within the borders.
After a short prelude and a mappilapattu that closely follows life and days in Malappuram, the film opens with 'one fine day'. So, one fine day, we quietly slip into the world of Irfan (Shane Nigam) and Anita (Shruthi Menon), who want to lead a life together but are wrought with troubles starting with different religious backgrounds to unconventional age gap between them. And then, we see the above-mentioned lines making circles and then forming knots, the strings of which are pulled by different people in every which direction.
While we witness the engrossing story of Irfan and Anitha that unravels in the Ponnani police station, our gazes wander over to a set of other issues, staged brilliantly by the director. Kismath is criss-crossed with a varied number of issues. It's not as though our thoughts are stuck with the lovers' woes, but they go along with the migrant laborer, who with an indomitable spunk tries to prove his innocence. With equal ease, the travesty of law shows itself in the face of an innocent man who is framed by the police. All of these incidents punctuate the main narrative, although makes no real connection with it, and are smart additions that keep the show touchingly real.
The cast is the best bet of the film; Shane Nigam as Irfan balances the innocence of his character with the maturity of his mind with unquestionable ease. He carries off the classic deadpan expression with a flair rarely seen, tossing in well-timed dialogues. Be it the time he fumbles befuddled by the way the police treated his complaint or when he realizes that he's been fooled by his family, he gets it just right. Shruthi Menon is especially good in times of grave conflict, though during the outbursts of emotions, she comes off with a few rough edges. Vinay Forrt, easily in his best form, takes over the show for a while with his demanding presence and brings alive a cocky policeman replete with audacious comments and plucky attitude. The eruptions in each of the families fit right in with a pounding sense of realistic vision. The BGM, slow and rhythmic becomes another beautiful layer of the film.
A simple story told with no props and without marketable elements, Kismath makes for an honest film; one that doesn't just pass a sideways glance at the unforgiving social constructs, but zooms them for us to take a good look. The conflicts laden on lovers' turf, barrenness of the hearts that are suffused with theories of caste and the helplessness of the non-affluent sneer at us from the frames of the film, almost hinting that if we peer a tad too much, we might see our own reflections in them.
Onmanorama rating: 3/5
