Hridayam (2021)

Hridayam (2021)

Written and Directed by: Vineeth Srinivasan
Starring: Pranav Mohanlal, Darshana Rajendran, Kalyani Priyadarshan

Hridayam is a film that is exactly in my zone, in fact it has a lot of similarities to one of my own screenplays. So I had to watch this film for sure. I loved the vibe of the film, it's breezy, subliminal, and at times deep too. It's beautifully executed. In the beginning, I was not so sure but I was eventually drawn to Pranav and his charm, although I felt that he could've done the voice over better. I like how the film takes the character on a rollercoaster ride - there are ups and downs. Like the entire, alcohol phase, and the phase where he decides to stop everything and get clean. Although what I felt at certain places was that, the screenplay was deliberately structured in a way for the character to have wider range of experiences. It didn't seem so natural. Darshana's character was interesting - but I wasn't very convinced that she wouldn't have moved on from him even before his wedding. But I absolutely loved the pre-interval scene where she asks him about how life would've been if she forgave him earlier. It just shows how sometimes, we end up losing so much because of our own anger - although in this case it's justified too. 

I really enjoyed how the film made me feel nostalgic. Although towards the ending, it felt like a bit of a drag because after the marriage, apart from him regaining his conscious there wasn't really much happening. I like how the director holds his ground in terms of character - like he doesn't explain each and every motive of every character and sometimes it even feels instinctive. I didn't enjoy the climax when he again goes to the Secret Alley, because for the character he's revisiting after 10 years, but for us it happened right in the film and we're looking at it again. So it felt a bit repetitive like that. Although I'm just writing about what didn't work for me in the film, because usually this is the space that I really enjoy watching. I enjoyed the film, and the music was also beautiful.