Chaappa Kurishu
| Chaappa Kurish | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical Poster | |
| Directed by | Sameer Thahir |
| Written by | Sameer Thahir Unni.R |
| Produced by | Listen Stephen |
| Starring | Fahad Fazil Vineeth Sreenivasan Roma Remya Nambeesan Nivetha |
| Cinematography | Jomon T. John |
| Music by | Rex Vijayan |
Production company | Magic Frames |
| Distributed by | Central Pictures |
Release date |
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| Country | Template:Film India |
| Language | Malayalam |
Chaappa Kurish (Malayalam: ചാപ്പാ കുരിശ്, English: Head or Tail) is a 2011 Malayalam thriller film co-written and directed by Sameer Thahir and starring Fahad Fazil, Vineeth Sreenivasan, Roma, Remya Nambeesan and Nivetha in the lead roles. The film started production in April 2011 at Ernakulam and released on 14 July to notabily mixed reviews.
The film marks the directorial debut of Sameer Thahir who has cinematographed films like Big B and Daddy Cool.
Plot
The film puts the scanner on the strangeness of reality in a busy city in Kerala, teeming with life. It deals with issues that are real, contemporary and quite complex.
The film revolves around the lives of two persons in extremes. On the one end is Arjun (Fahad Fazil), who is excavating riches by being in the booming construction business. He wants to be successful at any price. He moves around in plush chauffer driven cars, uses state-of-the-art phones, and flirts with the telemarketing ladies. And, has a full-fledged affair with his subordinate Sonia (Remya Nambeesan), even though he is preparing to be engaged to his family friend's daughter Ann (Roma).
At the other end there is Ansari (Vineeth Sreenivasan), who lives in a slum and works in a supermarket doing odd jobs that include cleaning toilets, sweeping floors and being an errand boy for his supervisor. He is diminutive, almost a dwarf and looks like he is carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders. His lifestyle is frugal and unchanging. A major chunk of his earnings go home by old fashioned money order. Ansari has a soft corner for his co-worker Nafeeza (Nivetha), and she reciprocates his feelings.
The film reaches a turning point the moment Sonia learns that Arjun is getting engaged to Ann. A fight occurs between the two and in the heat of the moment he forgets to take his cell phone which had slipped out of his hand. The phone accidentally reaches the hands of Ansari and he keeps that as a treasure. Arjun gets upset over the loss of the phone. As the phone contains some obscene clips, Arjun tries to recover it from Ansari. He is afraid of a possible You Tube version of those photos. Arjun makes several calls to his missed phone but Ansari always kept it switched off. Arjun got terribly frustrated.
Finally, Ansari attends the call, but not ready to give the phone back to Arjun. Ansari undergoes a total change in his character after the phone incident and Nafeeza notices it. Under pressure from Nafeeza, Ansari opens up. Realising the seriousness of the matter, Nafeeza asks Ansari to return the phone to its owner.
Meanwhile, battery of the phone becomes empty. Ansari is financially incapable of buying a charger for the sophisticated handset. So he takes the phone to a shop. This is the turning point of the film. After tracing the clippings, the shop owner uploads the video on the You Tube. As it spreads like wild fire, it affects Arjun's marriage. At this stage, the film takes the main diversion.
It's a long winding chase that Arjun embarks on, since Ansari soon gets intoxicated by the dope of contentment that he derives from being in charge. The climatic showdown between the two is all the more vicious and bloody, as they literally tear themselves apart, before finally settling down and resignedly going their separate ways.
Cast
- Fahad Fazil as Arjun
- Vineeth Sreenivasan as Ansari
- Roma as Ann
- Remya Nambeesan as Sonia
- Nivetha as Nafeeza
Production
Title
"Chappa Kurishu" means Head or Tail in Malayalam. Sameer Thahir says: "While I was writing the script itself, giving shape to the main male leads, Arjun and Ansari, i knew that they were the two sides of the same coin. So I thought of ‘Heads and Tales’ as the title. But I wanted it in the colloquial lingo. It's called 'Changum Chappayum' in Kollam, 'Thalayum Valum' in Kottayam, 'Raja Kozhi' in Thrissur and 'Chaappa Kurish' in Cochin. And I belong to Cochin."[1]
Casting
The director says: "As the script took shape, Vineeth Seenivasan and Fahad Fazil, two wonderful actors, seemed to fit perfectly as the characters of Ansari and Arjun. In the movie they are one and the same but stand at two extremes just like the head and tail of a coin."[1]
Filming
Chappa Kurishu was launched by actor Kamal Haasan at the 100th day function of Traffic. The film was produced by Listin Stephen who also produced Traffic. It was director Anwar Rasheed who introduced Sameer Thahir to Listin.[1] The film started production in April 2011 at Ernakulam.
Controversies
By the Release of the Trailer itself Chaappa Kurishu has kick started controversies. There is some similarities between trailer title insets of American drama film 21 Grams directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu and written by Guillermo Arriaga, released in 2003.[2] The director says: "It was a blunder on my part. I did not give much thought to it while I adopted those lines. Now that it has been asked, it is actually doing good to the movie. So I really don’t mind."[1]
Another controversy was a two-minute smooch between Remya Nambeesan and Fahad Fazil, the first of its kind in Malayalam cinema. However, the scene is highly relevant to the context. Remya says: "An actress should always be ready to take risks if her character demands so. Even when I was aware that the two- minute intense scene could create waves, I was sure that it was inevitable as it suited the plot. A sense of necessity made me accept that scene. I think director Sameer Tahir brought out the best in me. In fact, I enjoyed doing the scene".[3] The director says: "We live in the 21st century and this is no big deal any more. Kissing and making love is part of life. That scene is very relevant to the script. And it is very aesthetically done. It’s part of the movie’s soul. So there is no reason why I should not include that."[1]
Reception
The film received notabily mixed reviews but men from the film field and industry didnt forget to praise the movie a whole since it is a first kind in Malayalam film Industry. Speaking to Fahad, he said a lot of directors whom he respects including Priyadarshan, Sathyan Anthikad and Lal Jose called him over phone and appreciated the performance. "Arjun – my character in Chappa Kurishu is not a role that an actor gets often. I am very lucky and very fortunate," says Fahad. He added the presence of a good director who chips in when needed and a good crew hepled him a lot. "Any actor can come out big under such circumstances." Fahad defended the hot scenes in the movie, the first of it's kind in Malayalam: "I was not ashamed at all acting that scene. Our tag line itself says based on 1000 true stories. Many people who phoned me said they knew people who became victims, by accident or other ways of such MMS. There is cinema in all experiences and there is scope for emotions everywhere. It is a great feeling that the people accepts when we capture such emotions and reflect it in the screen. The smooch was an essential part of Chappa Kurishu and we went on with it."
References
- ^ a b c d e "Behind The Camera: Chappayum Kurishum Screenil". Yentha.com. Retrieved 19 July 2011.
- ^ "Chaappa Kurish trailer, a rip off of Hollywood flick 21 Grams". Sanscinema.com. 21 June 2011. Retrieved 11 July 2011.
- ^ Keerthy Ramachandran. (18 July 2011). "Risque’-taking Remya Nambeesan". Deccan Chronicle. Retrieved 19 July 2011.