Film- Beginning
Director- Jagan Vijaya
Cast- Vinoth Kishan, Gouri Kishan, Rohini, Lagubaran, Sachin, Mahendran, Suruu, KPY Bala.
The split screen mode has been used in various films as an editing tool to depict simultaneous happenings at a single time on a screen split into various portions. But debutant Jagan Vijay in ‘Beginning’, uses this concept almost throughout the film, as he splitting his screen into two, narrates two stories simultaneously ,each taking up half of the screen. The film is claimed to be Asia’s first split screen movie that has followed the concept all through its run time. Incidentally, Sudhish Kamath’s ‘Good Night Good Morning’ had also used this concept for most part of its story telling. And there is the American experimental film ‘Time Code’,where four storylines are depicted simultaneously, each taking up a quarter of the screen.
The story opens on a darks screen where we hear some sounds of a scuffle off screen, and the voice of a girl Nithya who seems to have been abducted by some men. The screen then splits into two. And while on the right side we get to see a dingy room with an unconscious Nithya on the floor (Gouri) with her abductors around her, on the left is depicted Subramani and his mother (Vinoth, Rohini) on their daily routine. It’s to the director’s credit that though both stories are played simultaneously, the writing, sound and execution ensures that there is no overlapping or confusion. So while the abductors chat among themselves on one side, on the other are silent visuals of the mother-son duo as the former prepares to leave for work.The director has crafted these portions with finesse the interaction between Rohini and Vinoth working out well.
The intriguing opening moments gives promise of an exciting scenario to follow. But the director falters when he taking a leaf from ‘Cellular’, tries to link the two stories. And though the telephonic conversations between the lead pair are engaging, the sequences that follow seem contrived and lack conviction. Towards the latter part the director seems to have lost sight of the fact that his innovative story telling technique needed a solid content too to back it up. The tension generated in the early part fizzles out, and we miss out on the emotional connect with the characters, particularly with Nithya and her plight. A few minutes before the finale, when the parts merge into a whole, the story shifts to a single screen narration.
What helps hold up the film is the performances of the lead pair. Eminently watchable, Vinoth Kishan is perfectly cast as the autistic Subramani, the character well chiselled as it evolves in the story. Handling his role with instinctive understanding, Vinoth is consistent in his performance, never putting a wrong foot forward. It’s one of the actor’s best performances to date. Gauri reveals emotional prowess, her dialogue delivery and expression bringing out the expediency of the situation. Sachin plays the cool antagonist effectively.
A laudable experiment by a first time maker, ‘Beginning’ (111 minutes) could be a one -time watch.
Malini Mannath
Malini Mannath 