'Vaazhai' movie review: A child’s view of cruelty

With his debut film ‘Pariyerum Perumal’, Mari Selvaraj had established himself as one of the strong anti-caste voices in the Tamil film industry. His second film ‘Karnan’ too fetched critical appraisal, while ‘Mamannan’ received a mixed response. 

The trailer of ‘Vaazhai’ (Banana) hinted at a story of oppression and resilience in the backdrop of an exquisite setting and a touch of emotional drama.

'Vaazhai' is said to be based on true events. In the beginning of the film, it's shown that this film is a fictionalised account of the director's childhood memories. The tale of an oppressed community working as labourers in banana fields is narrated through the eyes of a school boy Shivanaindhan (Ponvel M). He is robbed of his childhood as he has to work with his mother and older sister to transport heavy banana bunches on his head across long distances. His only respite is his school. The film explores how this oppression and intensive labour affects him emotionally.

Mari Selvaraj's decision to set his film in a banana plantation and use the transportation of bananas as a way to tell a story of oppression, is interesting. Imagery and symbols of the left movement are portrayed in many scenes. Shivanaindhan’s dead father is also depicted as a union worker.

The scene, where his mother offers her earrings to the contractor in exchange for the cow her son lost, is particularly heart wrenching. In such a cruel caste-capitalistic system, the respite is love and friendship. Shivanaindhan and his friend Sekar (Raghul R) arguing about Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan’s acting, Shivanaindhan’s light moments with his school teacher Poongodi, the love story of his sister Vembu and Kani are few examples of that.

The cast has put their heart and soul into the film but Ponvel’s powerful expressions take the film to the next level. Santosh Narayan’s music captures the mood of the filmmaker’s childhood effectively. But autobiographical stories are always hard to imagine as fictional stories. And even with that effective and elaborate ending, one feels the touch of ‘Karnan’, where resistance is the main theme, is missing. But 'Vaazhai' makes viewers think of the cruel system we have created and are living in.