Just passing through...

 Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam (Stupor of the afternoon, Malayalam-Tamil; 2023)
Story, Direction: Lijo Jose Pellisary

It may take a little background on Tamil movies (a lot actually) with some knowledge of Hindu teachings to fully appreciate the cryptic messages the director/storyteller is trying to tell his audience. A person not immersed or having lived in this environment may find it draggy. Since this is a 'Malayalam' movie made by one famed in the Malayalam film industry, I wonder if a person from Kerala will find the same connection to the film as one who hails from a Tamil background. The story's backstory is hidden in the numerous Tamil songs, including devotional ones and classic Tamil movies playing in the background almost throughout. The overhanging theme throughout is God, the purpose of life and the role we play in it.

We walk into life thinking we know everything that needs to be known. We make our own rules and are convinced it is correct. We admonish others for deviating from what we perceive as the right path. We all think we know the true way; all roads actually lead to Rome.

The movie starts with a small busload of Malayalam-speaking worshippers returning home after their pilgrimage to the revered Annai Vellangkanni Church in Tamil Nadu. The protagonist James is quite set in his ways of doing things. He believes one should be well-behaved even after the pilgrimage - like one should avoid alcohol and practice restraint on the way back.

The movie starts with a hint of what is in store via two nuggets. At the cashier, while paying his hotel bill, James discusses a poster on the wall bearing Thirukkal's quote. "Death is sinking into slumbers deep. Birth again is waking out of sleep." As the opening credit rolls in, a Sirgazhi Sundarajan song is introduced. It hints that we all leave our abodes searching for a place that is not there... not knowing that the truth lies in our hearts...

Like that, in the background, something is heard all the time. Be it in 1954, MR Radha's 'Ratha Kaneer', where the dialogue seems to hint that we are ashamed of our heritage and spoon over Western civilisation or in 1973 'Gauravam', where Sivaji Ganesan's dual roles argue whether a lawyer should game the system or fight for the truth. All these little vignettes will only make sense if the audience understands the context.

James, a strict Christian who takes pride in his Kerala background and Malayalam, gets up from a slumber on the journey in the middle of nowhere and walks out of the bus. Almost like an automaton, he enters a random Tamil household and assumes the role of a man who had walked out on his family. James transforms into Sundaram, a Tamil-speaking Hindu villager. Sundaram's family is puzzled, as James is not Sundaram. They are angry, but at the same time, Sundaram's wife thinks her prayers are answered. (In the background plays a Tamil song with lyrics 'Is there God?') James mingles with the villagers like he knows them forever. Sadly, nobody knows him, but they join him in revelry because he is fun.

The last journey. Nobody follows you to the very end.
Only your deeds and misdeeds do.

Meanwhile, James' wife and teenage son are trying to figure out what is happening.

The only beings who accept James' new role as Sundaram are Sundaram's blind mother (devoid of senses that sway her concentration), who spends all her time watching T.V. and Sundaram's dog (devoid of the sixth sense), which is quite happy with Sundaram.

After all the confusion, after another afternoon siesta, James resumes his previous role and continues his bus journey with his wife and son. In the background, the melodious voice of TM Soundarajan is heard belting the 1962 'Paadha Kaanikai' song 'Veedu Varai Manaivi' with all his pregnant meanings of life, put a connection to the whole direction to the story of the film.

We all come walking into life with nothing. We assume roles like we know what is expected of us. We accumulate wealth, sins, baggage, and relationships, making rules and regulations like we know all of life's secrets. Ultimately, we return to where we came from with only the deeds and misdeeds we did in this life. To play another role, like an actor, in another play, in another realm or universe, not knowing our past.

Interestingly, everybody in the film, the Tamil villages and the Malayalee guests, only speak their own mother tongues. Yet, they can understand each other. A staunch Christian of James can morph into a diety-prostrating Hindu with ease. It only shows we, as humans, understand each other perfectly well, only to be confused by these other hindrances, like language and religion.

Like a playful indulgence, the director must have thrown the movie's last scene when the pilgrims leave for their home in Kerala. It is reminiscent of King Yudhiistra and the Pandavas' last journey in the Mahabharata. A faithful dog was an excellent companion to them all the way to Meru Hills.

(P.S. Not at all a logical explanation was given at the end to James' peculiar behaviour, be it a medical or spiritual one. Also, I wonder how foreign film critics, e.g. Roger Egbert, could hail this film with a 4.5/5 ★ without appreciating the nuances that come with the language, culture and nostalgia of the heydays of Tamil silver screen.)

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