Movie Review – Pariyerum Perumal

Torn and tortured

I was safely trying to avoid this film ever since it got talked about. First I didn’t want to watch a movie which uses caste as a tool to sell and also as a tool to tear jerk. Thanks to Mari Selvaraj, this film didn’t do both.

Initially only ‘Karuppi’ song of the film had released and there was quite a buzz around it. It didn’t intrigue be. I neither knew that it was a non-romantic song nor a song with a dog. So watching the movie was quite out of contention till then. Only after the word of mouth came that the movie had quite a number of positive reviews I actually got to know about the movie. But again I thought it would be a propaganda film and nothing other than that. Only after watching I knew what a good movie it was. It was not only high on content but also was high on art.

The film made sense right from the opening scene where a group of people were bathing their dogs. When they bathe there would be a group of people who’d be standing afar and looking at them. Who’d be on a raised platform of course. Upper caste alert. And these people would leave seeing them in order to avoid any problem. The upper caste people would come at the same place and urinate and scold them for the other group to have been there. That’s how cruel one can get. These people think that the place they urinate too is not suitable for the other group to bathe their dogs.

Their menace doesn’t stop there. They tie Karuppi to the railway line and it dies. In spite of seeing a lot of Saavu songs in films ‘Karuppi’ is the only time I felt that emotion of saavu molam working in me after a death. After the song there is an immediate shift in the film. Pariyan (Kathir) gets ready to join Law College. It would happen as if nothing had happened before. They’d have totally forgotten about the death of Karuppi. I’m not saying that one keeps on mourning but how life for them have to always go on despite what happens is such a hard pill to digest.

Karuppi also plays an important part in the films best cinematic sequence, when Pariyan and Karuppi are compared on how they are treated. Karuppie appears/reappears in blue in that song. I didn’t know that it’s a reference to ‘Neelam’. A lot of interesting topics like that came upon when we discussed the movie.

If his insult at the marriage hall is next stage of humiliation the films peaks at the point where Pariyan’s dad gets introduced. The next five minutes is a total shocker. For me the most heroic moment is when Pariyan takes his dad to college to meet his principal. Just after that two best scenes of the movie happens. The principal’s small little talk on why he must not be restricted and outside his dad’s humiliation. But the generally left out scene is my favourite scene of the movie where Pariyan’s mom talks on how Pariyan’s dad has been taken out by strangers to have sex but then left out knowing that he’s not a woman. That couldn’t have been said more matter of factly than that and that left a profound impact on me.

For most, what worked the best is how Mari Selvaraj handled a sensitive topic without being loud and vocal about it. His inspiration Ram lacks in that one aspect. He couldn’t convey a point without shouting. Mari Selvaraj said only what he wanted to say, said without people noticing and said in a way people who wants to notice would notice. So technically even if you want a file a case against him you can’t show evidence. On your face censors. I wish he makes one movie which is anti-censor and makes it as subtle and strong like this. Even as a person I liked the way he conducts himself, he’s very nice to talk to, you can’t provoke him easily like how you can do to Ram or a Thiagarajan Kumararaja.