Meenakshi Sundareshwar – A Refreshing Take On Relationships Which Flounders Midway
#MeenakshiSundareshwar is one of those films which promises a lot but ends up floundering in delivery. Set in Madurai, the film borrows its lead characters’ names from the Meenakshi Sundareshwar temple while also drawing from the legend associated with it. In a nutshell, this temple is one of the few Shiva temples where the principal deity is Goddess Meenakshi instead of Lord Shiva. The film too is an ode to the strength of women or rather her existence as a principal character in not just her own story but in the life of those connected to her. However, this messaging seems to get lost in trying to put fingers in one too many pies.
The film opens with Meenakshi & Sundareshwar meeting via a comedy of errors but ending up getting married nonetheless. In this short sequence, the film is able to convey the opposite personalities of both the characters as well as establish their families – a conciseness & attention sorely missing later. This directorial debut by Vivek Soni seeks to showcase the complexities of a long distance relationship, especially in context of an arranged marriage where you partner is more or less a stranger as is his/her family. It is in these unfamiliar circumstances that Meenakshi finds herself in when her husband leaves for a traineeship in an IT company in Bangalore the very next day of their wedding. On his part, Sundar too finds himself a fish out of water in Bangalore where his boss is an eccentric wannabe Steve Jobs (comes across as a sasta Mark Zuckerberg imo) and competition is (apparently) fierce. And this is where the problems in the narrative start.
While the film has some charming sequences as it builds M &S’ relationship using new age technology as well as injecting some fine humour when the two are trying to be intimate albeit long distance but inadvertently find their plans exposed to their families, these are moments too far strewn apart in a lacklustre narrative that opens too many ends and then tries to hastily close them all. Characters are left unexplored even if hints about their lives have been given some importance earlier like S’ sister’s mystery boyfriend or his boss who the film cant decide is a genius or a blithering idiot. Even Meenakshi for that matter has not been done justice by the writers. She is a BBA graduate with dreams of making a difference but once Sundar’s job comes into the picture, everything takes a backseat. This important plot point, specially in a movie as this purports to be, is not explored more than in a scene or two & never truly become a part of M & S’ many conversations except when it does in a way that seems too sudden to be appreciated as it shouldve been.
Lastly, I am not a Tamil speaker so I cannot comment on the veracity of the dialogues & pronunciations but for a film set in Madurai, these characters sure speak a lot of Hindi. I get that it is a Hindi film and perhaps that is too much to ask but it just rings wrong in days of subtitles when characters who all belong to a specific language speaking community dont indulge in it for more than an expression now and then.
This is a film that could have been so much more – a new age romance trend setter perhaps for it had all the elements – from the cast to the production values. The music by Justin Prabhakaran is a breath of fresh air in times when every second song is a rehash of an old hit or with lyrics that make little sense. The cinematography by Debojeet Ray is stunning & will have you planning a trip to Madurai! Talking about performances, Sanya Malhotra as Meenakshi who is a straight up delight to watch – the way her eyes light up to how her shoulders droop! Abhimanyu is good as as the under confident but sincere Sundar who has had to listen to one too many taanas by his father & is now set on proving himself. Purnendu Bhattacharya in the role of Abhimanyu’s father is excellent, especially in the scene in Abhimanyu’s office when the silent pride in his eyes will make your heart swell!
All in all, it’s a film that one can watch but be ready to feel that slight irritation accompanying films that you know could have been much better had the writers & others associated with the screenplay not lost steam midway.
Direction: Vivek Soni
Cast: Sanya Malhotra, Abhimanyu, Purendu Bhattacharya, Sukhesh Arora, Shivkumar Subramaniam, Komal Chhabria
