Jana Gana Mana movie review: Suraj Venjaramoodu rises above a script that lacks cohesion, clarity, depth, finesse and calm

Language: Malayalam

The spotlight falls on the superstar of the new Malayalam film, Jana Gana Mana, only in the second half of the narrative. Once the camera rests on Prithviraj Sukumaran’s character though, it rarely moves away from him as he belts out speech after speech…after speech…after speech…steeped in powerful messaging that, despite the loudness and melodrama of those scenes, is largely well reasoned.

A film has to be more than the message/s it wishes to drive home though. And messages are conveyed by more than just speeches. Neither point appears to have struck director Dijo Jose Antony or writer Sharis Mohammed.

The tension pervading Jana Gana Mana is sparked by news of the rape and death of a popular college lecturer called Sabha Maryam (Mamta Mohandas). What follows is an apathetic response from her institution, student unrest, nationwide outrage, sensationalised media coverage and finally, a police encounter that sparks hysterical approval from the masses and celebrities. Sounds familiar?

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The case of a doctor in Hyderabad who was raped and murdered after which the accused were killed by the police when they allegedly tried to escape is still fresh in public memory.

Jana Gana Mana draws on this and multiple other news developments and newsmakers from real life throughout the script in big and small ways. For instance, a point is made fleetingly about prejudice against Muslim women who cover their heads, a public figure says a person can be gauged by their attire while another cites outward appearance as his barometer, and a Machiavellian politician declares that he is willing to ban notes and even votes to retain power. All these are fitted into a script that ends up being primarily about caste oppression.

No doubt in the present Indian political scenario it could be argued that each of these elements is an act of courage and, therefore, laudable. Fair enough. But courage alone is not cinema, especially when these disparate components are not woven together into a cohesive whole.

Most characters in the film barring one - a policeman played by Suraj Venjaramoodu - are sketchily drawn and even his graph is unconvincing, the director relies too heavily on Prithviraj’s larger-than-life persona to sustain Jana Gana Mana post-interval, the script feels too crowded, and the narrative jumps from one point to the next to the next instead of flowing smoothly.

The bad writing extends to poorly constructed scenes and awkward dialogues, made worse by strained acting from several actors, in addition to unrelenting music.

The overall effect of the film is its high volume, not just in a literal sense but also in terms of its tendency to underline every point raised, through the use of its soundtrack and studied camerawork. An overly long epilogue announces a sequel to Jana Gana Mana, adding to the film’s already exhausting length.

The tacky direction and writing are combined with confused politics. Jana Gana Mana’s title is drawn from India’s national anthem and alludes to the minds and will of the people, yet the film dithers in its position on mob justice. A college lecturer speaking to his class about their duty to fight the good fight appears to trivialise the Kiss of Love campaign started in Kerala to oppose self-appointed moral police. The incident that looms over the entire proceedings in Jana Gana Mana is a woman’s rape yet at the forefront of the script are two men - ACP Sajjan Kumar (Suraj) and advocate Aravind Swaminathan (Prithviraj). The woman herself, Sabha, is written as a rough outline of a kind soul committed to social welfare, and nothing beyond that. Caste bias, discrimination and atrocities are Jana Gana Mana’s main concerns, yet the reins of the battle are not handed to the marginalised community in question.

The saviour complex should not come as a surprise for anyone who has seen the director’s film _Queen_ with its deeply problematic treatment of rape; nor should the tackiness. In fact, in both respects, Jana Gana Mana is a vast improvement on Queen.

Prithviraj and Suraj teamed up not too long back in Lal Jr’s smartly written and crisply directed _Driving Licence_ (2019). That film was an excellent addition to the Malayalam New New Wave from which has emerged some of the best Indian cinema of the past decade. Jana Gana Mana is undistinctive, notwithstanding its brave throwaway lines and moments that made my liberal heart sit up and take notice.

Despite the film’s limitations, Suraj manages to turn out a warm performance that rises above the failings of the script. Prithviraj’s charisma makes it hard to ever dislike him on screen, but it is just as hard not to wonder why a star who has directors and writers lining up at his door chose to back this film that lacks cohesion, clarity, depth, finesse and calm.

This review was first published in April 2022 when Jana Gana Mana was released in theatres. The film is now streaming on Netflix. 

Rating: 2 (out of 5 stars)  

Anna MM Vetticad is an award-winning journalist and author of The Adventures of an Intrepid Film Critic. She specialises in the intersection of cinema with feminist and other socio-political concerns. Twitter: @annavetticad, Instagram: @annammvetticad, Facebook: AnnaMMVetticadOfficial 

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