Nobody asked for my review- PonMan
Ponman. (Spoilers ahead)
Ponman, literally meaning Gold Man, is a Malayalam dark-comedy film with a lesson as valuable as gold. The directorial debut of Jothish Shankar, it stars Basil Joseph, Lijomol Jose, Sajin Gopu, Anand Manmadhan and Deepak Parambol and is based on the novel, "Naalanchu Cheruppakar", by GR Indugopan.
The story follows the problems of a family in Kollam: a widowed mother, her daughter Steffi Graf (Lijomol Jose), who is unmarried at 32, and her son Bruno, an unemployed, violent, and communist brat who cares about nothing but his party and communism.
What problems?
The first issue is Steffi's marriage. To arrange Steffi's marriage, they must provide 25 pavan (sovereigns) of gold as dowry, as asked by the groom's family. Demanding dowry is as common as asking for a glass of water. At 32—considered quite late for marriage—Steffi is not even asked about her wishes and is instead forced into it. Her family, trusting that the money they would receive at the wedding would cover up for the dowry, accept the demand.
Second is Bruno. Bruno's violent streak gets him embroiled in a case with the church. Subsequent events anger both the church and his party. The monetary support that was supposed to come from the party and the church is now in jeopardy.
The third issue is Gold. While the money would (hopefully) come on the wedding day, the gold the bride had to wear would be needed before the money would pour in. And why—or how—would anyone provide gold without payment?
Short of money and gold, Bruno looks for help in arranging the gold.
The help comes in the form of P. P. Ajesh played by the brilliant Basil Joseph- or simply, Ponman. An agent of "Madiyil (On the Lap) Jewellery," Ajesh provides gold for weddings and other events without upfront payment, under the condition that the full amount is settled within a short period. If the borrower fails to pay, he reclaims gold equivalent to the unpaid sum. He does exactly that. He arranges the gold, allowing Steffi's family to breathe a sigh of relief.
The wedding takes place. Steffi marries Mariyano (Sajin Gopu), a towering man who works as a small-time prawn farm worker. Everything is on the right track. Until it isn't.
On the wedding night, Ajesh understands that the required money is barely there (only for 13 pavan). This means that Ajesh would have to take back the remaining 12 pavan.
This is where the shift takes place.
Steffi refuses to give back the gold and leaves Ajesh in a fix. Going from her own house to her in-laws the next day, we see Ajesh following them all the way to Thalavettichira—a place as dark as its name. How (and whether) Ajesh gets back the gold forms the rest of the story.
The story was engaging, and credit is due to Jothish Shankar and Justin Mathew for the screenplay. Plus, seeing my hometown, Kollam, from the lens of Sanu John Varghese was beautiful!
Ponman, among other things, highlights the issue of dowry—something widely known and practiced despite laws against it—without being too preachy. Basil's character is believable and seems almost like he's not acting. The dynamic of Basil and Sajin Gopu resembles David and Goliath (and if you took your Sunday school classes seriously, you know what happens :p), Lijomol Jose has a beautiful character arc.
A story of deceit, desperation, determination, dowry, and of course, gold—this movie had me hooked from the start to the end. It's a movie that lingers with you even after the credits roll and definitely deserves your 127 minutes. So go, watch it.
Streaming on JioHotstar.
Credits- Google Images
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