At the centre of Vala: The Story of a Bangle is, properly, a bangle, which everyone appears to need. There is a legend connected to this valuable stones-encrusted bangle of Arabian origins, which could lead on the viewers to suppose that perhaps the movie is alongside the traces of Padakkalam – an vintage object with supernatural powers. No, the bangle doesn’t possess such powers. Vala is sort of about greed, hubris, and redemption, amongst different issues, however falls brief regardless of the offbeat premise.
Written by Harshad, who scripted Unda, Dayom Panthrandum (which he additionally directed), Puzhu, and Kadina Kadhoramee Andakadaham, Vala has been directed by Muhashin. His final movie was Kadina Kadhoramee Andakadaham.
This is the story of two {couples} — Banu Prakash and Vishalakshi, and Purushothaman and Sarala — and their pre-occupation with the bangle. Purushothaman Nair (Purushu), essayed by an impish Dhyan Sreenivasan, is a rich, small-time politician married to Sarala (Raveena Ravi), an worker at Akshaya Centre. The bangle belongs to Sarala, which, curiously, she can’t take off her wrist. The twist within the story comes when Vishalakshi (Sheethal Joseph) sees it on a go to to the Akshaya Centre; by the way, on the finish of an argument between the 2, Vishalakshi decides she needs a bangle that’s comparable.
The provocation is that she has eloped with Banu (Lukman Avaran), a policeman, taking alongside together with her what she thought was gold jewelry from dwelling. It occurs to be her grandmother’s outdated field of trinkets. That realisation leaves her feeling insufficient regardless of Banu’s fixed reassurance. She, nonetheless, fixates on getting a comparable bangle, and that’s the motion of Vala.
It can be straightforward accountable Vishalakshi for being infantile in her demand, however the viewers understands why she behaves that approach — she has left dwelling, been disowned by her dad and mom, and resides in a home with strangers. When we meet Purushu, we get a feeling that he’s not as smiley as he seems; he has a grasping facet to him. Harshad’s writing captures the interior ideas of the characters, however one needs for extra depth to them. Especially the animosity between Banu and Purushu.
The narration follows the principle levels of storytelling; nonetheless, the primary half takes up time to put the muse, introduce the characters and their motives, and set the motion in movement. A big half of the primary half makes one marvel about what course, if in any respect, the film would take. Fortunately, the motion picks up simply earlier than the interval.
Vala: The Story of a Bangle (Malayalam)
Director: Muhashin
Cast: Santhi Krishna, Vijayaraghavan, Dhyan Sreenivasan, Lukman Avaran, Raveena Ravi, Sheethal Joseph
Runtime: 133 minutes
Storyline: The movie revolves round a bangle which gangsters, cops and everyone else appears to need.
The second half makes you sit up, as a result of up till then, it seems like we’re additionally aimlessly going about in circles. The second half lays naked the motion, and most of the whys and hows are answered. The bangle will be taken off, we study. We additionally study who it belongs to, as a result of within the first half, we discover out that it’s not a household heirloom as Sarala claims. The bangle belongs to Fatima (Santhi Krishna). It’s gifted to her by her husband Soopikka (Vijayaraghavan).
Soopikka and Banu have a historical past, albeit an disagreeable one, which is particularly unflattering to Banu. Retrieving the bangle to return it to Soopikka and Fatima turns into a mission to redeem himself. Purushu, in the meantime, is determined to get the bangle off his spouse’s hand as a result of he has taken cash from a gangster for it. After some anticipated and a few surprising twists, the bangle reaches the palms of the Superintendent of Police.
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This is the place the movie challenges one’s widespread sense. Everybody related with the bangle gathers on the SP’s home (why?), the place the stolen property is handed over to him (once more, why?). Soopikka is suspicious in regards to the cop’s intentions (that he would pocket it), which we additionally perceive.
This is problematic on many ranges. The most elementary query is “Can we trust our cops?” One sincerely hopes this doesn’t occur prefer it does within the movie. It is a terrifying thought.
Muhashin has extracted the most effective from his actors, and so they have delivered, particularly Lukman, whose efficiency has matured over time. As the hassled, henpecked, and in love Banu, he tugs our heartstrings. Dhyan, as Purushu, with shades of gray, is in his aspect, very completely different from his goofy, clickbait-y on-line persona. Vijayaraghavan and Santhi Krishna make a candy couple. Raveena, Sheethal, and others additionally impress. Music composer Govind Vasantha seems in a cameo.
Vala, regardless of its redeeming elements, fails to capitalise on a promising thought. Just once we suppose it is going to come collectively, it doesn’t. There are some flashes of humour, which once more aren’t sufficient to avoid wasting the film.
Vala is presently operating in theatres