Priyan Ottathilanu will remind you of Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s Anand

Those were the times of a certain enduring innocence. Men could hug women without anything sexual between them. A woman could walk into her beloved’s home and roam around singing Na jiya lage na as if she owned the home and the song. A friendly genial man could befriend strangers on the road without being considered creepy. Priyan Ottathilanu, which roughly translated means, ‘Priyan On The Run’ is the recent Malayalam film that again proves Kerala is the hub of cinematic excellence. It reminded me of Hrishikesh Mukherjee ’s classic take on compassion and empathy. Anand came a good fifty years. Have those intrinsically humane values become outdated? Director Antony Sony gently suggests, love is forever. And not that man-woman thing which wears off after some time. This is the love that makes the world go around. It certainly makes Priyan’s world spin non-stop. As played by the charming Sharafuddin, the protagonist a true hero without the trappings, Priyan is an incorrigible do-gooder. No no, not the kind of meddlesome guy who insists on plonking himself in the middle of everyone’s problems with a _Main Hoon Na_ kind of ownership.

Priyan is the silent uncomplaining Mr Fixit. In no time at all we see him sorting out problems in his housing society, lending a helping hand to anyone who rushes to him, and that includes an old female friend who needs some TLC right before her wedding. What is truly astounding is that the entire edifice of all-pervasive goodness doesn’t topple over under the weight of its own moral levity. This is partly because Sharafuddhin is the kind of inherently affable actor who looks convincing as the go-to guy to fix a sink or a to fix a sinking relationship. Director Antony Sony keeps the tone buoyant all through. The film wears its heart on its sleeve and doesn’t feel bashful about its devotion to spreading the light of love all across the frames. The writing (by Abhaya Kumar K and Anil Kurien ) is seamless in its episodic movement. We see Priyan juggling with what he considers his “decent schedule” when it is clear as daylight that he bites much more than any average do-gooder can chew. While the narrative remains remarkably focused even as the protagonist runs helter-skelter, it is only at midpoint that the plot gathers its wits together and pushes Priyan’s chaotic life into a point of no return where he questions himself about his priorities in life. Putting others before self and family, is that Gandhian or plain blind-sighted? I loved the way Priyan’s relationship with his car passenger the hurt wounded and guilt stricken Priscilla (Nyla Usha, strong and vulnerable ) works its way into a kind of sensible mature equation that we seldom see in Indian films. By the time the day’s monstrously hectic activities are over, Priscilla has one question to ask her new friend: what does Priyan get out of the staggering self-denying altruism that rules his life? Priyan’s answer will stay with you: “You know that egg-and-spoon race we used to participate in during our childhood? At the start it is all about winning. But then it’s only about making sure that the egg doesn’t slip off the spoon.” This is the single-most illuminating thought on the rat race of life and the individual’s choices and priorities, I’ve heard in any film in any language from the time that I could recall. There have been other films in recent times trying to give us gyan on the meaning of a good life. Something like Raj Kumar Hirani’s PK looks so amateurish and pushy when compared with the gentle persuasion of Priyan Ottathilanu. This is the sort of cinema that revises the way we look at life. Sometimes you know you are being used. But it’s okay to be useful. This film tells us it’s fine to be that all-purpose guy whom you can call any time of the day when you need something done. In a world rapidly getting swathed into self-love, we need many more Anands and Priyans. Subhash K Jha is a Patna-based film critic who has been writing about Bollywood for long enough to know the industry inside out. He tweets at @SubhashK_Jha. Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News ,  India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.