Village life is often romanticized in films, and there are several reasons for it. Mostly because we as humans are naturally aligned to nature and when evolution began there before migration and urbanisation. Even amidst the hustle of life, a part of the heart yearns to get back to times when breathing clean air wasn’t a privilege and star gazing wasn’t a luxurious paid event. But towards the last decade, many actors of valuable calibre have stuffed the need to go back to their roots. But when it happens organically, like in Sevappi, it warms the heart like a bowl of soup on a cold morning.
Set in the 1990s, Sevappi, directed by MS Raaja, narrates the tale of a boy and his relationship with the beloved chicken he raises. When she goes missing, it wreaks havoc in the village. What happens after this incident forms the rest of the story.
Cast: Poornima Ravi, Shravan Athvethan, Rishikanth, Thanesh Venkat, Dilli, Rajamani and Thirunavukkarasu
Director: MS Raaja
There are several tender moments between the mother Boomi (Poornima Ravi) and the child Kumaran (Shravan Athvethan). Although she is a single mother, struggling to make ends meet, she is always there for Kumaran at all times. She hits Kumaran when he asks a curious question, but as she struggles to apologise, she makes amends with him through a bowl of payasam first thing in the morning. He speaks with a picture of his father and tells him that he needs a baby chicken to play with. This boy, all of less than five years, only wishes for a baby chicken. Let that be registered.
Cinematographer Manoharan M glides his camera through picturesque locations in Chinnakkaampatti village, traversing through simpler joys like playing pallanguzhi, fighting for panangizhangu and pambaram. Heck, even the name of the chicken that Kumaran raises is called Sevappi, because she is red in colour. There isn’t much thought put into naming his ‘child’ that he thinks was born because he kissed the chicken.
Allow me to describe one more scene. Karnan (Rishikanth) feels bad for her sister Boomi and hopes that she gets a better life, so he asks Paruthi (Sebastin Antony), her friend and well-wisher if he is interested in marrying her. All he says is that she is happy with her son Kumaran and one doesn’t need to get married to be happy. These moments are thoughtfully written and are refreshing amid old done-to-death tropes of showcasing villagers looking at single women as damsels to be rescued from the depths of the abyss.
Truly, all that makes Sevappi is her redness, just like the mud in the village and the blood shed for Oththa Paarai, an inanimate rock that supposedly has a demon guarding several boxes of treasures. In the process of turning a blind eye to the love that humans have for animals and the co-existence between the beings, it is humans who become demons. In this case, it is Moodan (a) Chakravarthi (Dilli).
What probably derails this simple, yet effective plot is the chaotic second half that tries to bite more than it can chew. When it takes a detour to a communal angle, the incidents that occur thereafter feel rushed to get to a conclusion. As much as the narrative goes towards a high with several heartwarming moments, post the intermission, it moves to an emotional drama that works effectively… but only in parts.
It is beautiful to see a glimpse into the mind of a young one. To live with innocence and believe the almost-harmless lies fed to you in bowls of payasams and kanjis. It is probably why we see the chaos unfolding through his eyes. But we cannot ignore the truth and here, it might have come a little bit too erratic… and sevapp-ish.
#endearing #ode #love #animals #mothers #uncles #Cinema #express
