Visual arts have so often been a cliché for the cobweb of imagination that rushes out of human mind. None of such art is so overpowering than Film – which beam in its capacity to strike a spell on one for hours in continuity. Film – A gorgeous synthesis of the emotions of possible extremes, the colors of various spectrums, discrete yet a shade of continuum, the sound of music touching every right nerve and all leading up to, the subtle and plain reflection of oneself in various moments of the motion picture.
If the film happens to be Mayakkam Enna. Classy!
Right on the piece, Selva effusively creates high octane of emotions in its every subtlety, and magically enough he sustains it until just before the finish. Moving off the stereotype, as always he is, owing to his reclusive nature and exemplification of his own life in his films, he has portrayed a world of wisdom, love, passion, sacrifice, betrayal, lust, depression, hatred, melancholy at its worse form, empathy, forlorn all in varying measures and left us all alone to ponder the various inquiries that arise out of this blend.
The story of Mayakkam Enna is told through its silences. Karthik and Yamini. The first half of the story lays out the soaring passion that rises and fall as natural as it could get only between them.
Although Karthik resembles a tough and angry man outside but he is effectively frail, emotional and soft-hearted within. The rush of emotions is brilliantly enacted when he was subject to constant denial of recognition. Imagine this. Karthik was in anticipation of the comments on his photo but in return he receives a double whammy where none but the Love of his heart says ‘I have to finish the shoot with a good photographer’. Just when you thought this would sure lead him a free fall to the wreckage, Karthik exhibits excellent disposition right after it and attains a bit of self-solace through the natural photography of that wrinkle-less face. It is well truly a moment of rising from within. And then sample this most private moment. He clicks his machine around the forest, captures some brilliant photography, lays enthralled in the depth of nature, mesmerized by the powerful, joy abound within and finally struck epiphany by the leaf on a free fall. All these against a silky background score which added a touch of fullness to that moment. Intensifying. Truly Exhilarating.
Also, later when he seeks justice with the ace photographer and finding his betrayal crumpling him down, he utters ‘Saar, Konjam help pannunga Saar’. That final call of hope. Dying within.
To see Yamini deal with her irresistible love for her man, and the events that slowly builds up intensifying it all the more which leaves her crave, pine and fight for him is the craftwork of highest order of filmmaking. All these strings of events when finally coincides with the moment of his utter despair of being rejected for bird photography, passion for each other eats them into a communion. The varying degrees of light work when they hug and kiss each other at the bus station was a finer attempt at blackening out the existential world around them and bringing it back later. The visceral drives that feeds off each other’s desires perfectly. I must confess I liked it very much. These are moments of innate feeling. This is what leaves me wanting more from a filmmaker like Selva.
She says she admires him for his relentless pursuit of passion and somewhere deep within she wants to emulate it herself which leads to the second half of the story.
Karthik plunges into darkness, loses grip on his life, perseverance fading and moving away from the hopes that held him intact in the past. She recognizes the delicate changes that her life is transforming to and the lying thorny path ahead, but yet she demonstrates her compassion for him, deeply perceptive of his torment and distress. She starts relentlessly pursuing her own passion, which is none but him.
Yamini do have her intrinsic moments of sensuality with her man, which is depicted in much profound sense well describing the stark realism rising above the usually abject moral realism.
She puts up with his incorrigible acts at times, helps him get along with life and goes through every ordeal with much calm, intense and strong-will which tests her extremes of emotions to an extent as worse as having to miscarry a baby because of his act. But she carries on further with the purest act of altruism and walks in to the most unsettling moment with absorbing emotions where she scrubs the blood off the floor, and with it, each other breaking down to the finest bit. This is stretching emotions as far as even we are left in utter ruins too and taxing enough.
The climax is at best laughable and best describes the Indian mentality of fulfillment that is attained only with stage awards. After having won the shooting contract for National Geography and her wife carrying his child again, hasn’t the life come a full circle for him? Why drift away? Even worse is that he waxes eloquent about his friends and then starts walking away, much to the surprise of everyone (I thought probably something big awaiting), but turns back sheepishly, walks up and showers all praise for his wife, I did not understand these loads of confusion to not talk about her in the first place and then turning up again.
As Selva has expressed himself, there are different colors of emotion and I must say, he has captured every color of it.
Mayakkam Enna is a refinement of highest order and a craft of masterpiece. Immense respect for the filmmaker.
And the ringtone goes
It’s been so long,
that I haven’t seen your face,
I’m trying to be strong,
but the strength I have is washing away.
