Film- DeAr
Director- Anand Ravichandran
Cast- GV Prakash, Aishwarya Rajesh,Rohini, Kaali Venkat, Thalaivasal Vijay, Geetha Kailasam, Nandini, Abdool Lee, Ilavarasu.
A relationship drama, the film dwells on an issue that threatens to disrupt a newlywed couple’s marital life. How they deal with it forms the crux of the plot. This is the director’s first theatrical release after his direct OTT streaming ‘Sethum Aayiram Pon’, a film far better than this.
Deepika’s snoring-problem comes in the way of her marriage, potential grooms backing out. But when the family of Arjun a news reader approaches with a marriage proposal, she on the advice of her mother doesn’t disclose it to him. The wedding night is a disaster, she snoring, he a light sleeper, shocked and disbelieving. It’s how the issue affects their marital life as they try out ways to sort it out. The film seems like a gender reversed version of ‘Goodnight’ which had brought out the conflict in a better way.
The screenplay could have done with more focus and coherence. The narrative is inconsistent in its mood and feel. It’s like the director has decided on his crucial plot points first, and then written scenes leading to them. At a point, with the snoring-issue at a stalemate, the director jumps into another major issue in the family. One felt it was more to give space and justify the presence of a seasoned actress like Rohini (as Arjun’s mother) who had hardly much to do in the earlier part. Incidentally, the men are depicted as either dominating or playing truant, the women a largely submissive, apologetic lot. Realisation would come for the men, in a very cliched convenient way.
Aishwarya has put in a sincere effort. But weakly etched moments like her character being in this constantly apologetic mode with Arjun, like she had a committed a crime, takes some of the sheen out of her performance. By now one is familiar with GV Prakash’s expressions and mannerisms and his performance springs no surprise.
Falling short on sensitivity and sensibility, ‘DeAr’ (134 minutes) is effort wasted.
Malini Mannath
Malini Mannath 