Prakambanam Movie Review and Rating: At a crucial moment, Russia-based exorcist Stanislavski (Rajesh Madhavan) proclaims, “I am going to break all the conventional rules of exorcism,” reminding OG psychiatrist Dr. Sunny Joseph (Mohanlal) of Manichitrathazhu (1993). Frankly speaking, that is what director Vijesh Panathur has also done in the horror comedy Prakambanam; He has broken the conventions of the genre to offer a hallucinatory journey with a septuagenarian ghost. One of the key things that Vijesh and screenwriter Sreehari Vadakkan have done to ensure this, and that has helped them a lot, is to throw logic out the window and simply go with the flow, introducing and executing elements that sound and look fun or intriguing, thus preventing the film from being weighed down by horror-comedy clichés. Thanks to the creators’ conviction of its lack of logic, these elements never appear out of place in Prakambanam and instead help it.
Rukmini alias Chembakathamma (Mallika Sukumaran) is the matriarch of an elite Hindu family in northern Kerala. Although she is a staunch theist and very superstitious, her sons, Raghavan (Kalabhavan Navas) and Rameshan (Azeez Nedumangad), are the exact opposite and are members of the Left party. As a result, fights are frequent in their house, but Chembakathamma’s husband Madhavan (PP Kunhi Krishnan) has nothing to say and is always just a mute spectator. Therefore, even when she dies and her children decide to simply cremate her without performing rituals, Madhavan is unable to express his opinion. He, however, secretly entrusts his grandson, Siddharth (Ganapathi), a college student, to dispose of his ashes in a temple town. Although he is hesitant at first, Siddharth accepts and takes the ashes to his lodge.
However, that may have been the most costly decision he ever made, as his grandmother’s ghost soon possesses his friend Punyalan (Sagar Surya), leaving Siddharth and Shankaran (Ameen), another of his friends, with no idea what to do. Although it is not torture, it creates a scandal whenever the youth behave in an undisciplined manner or violate the code of conduct approved by Chembakathamma, causing major problems for the trio. Furthermore, he has a “small” wish to fulfill before leaving Punyalan’s body: to commit a “small murder.” While they tirelessly fight to resolve the problem, other inmates at the hostel begin to have doubts about Punyalan’s behavior, which makes matters worse.
Although the opening scenes in the college hostel give a strong sense of déjà vu from Adi Kapyare Kootamani (2015), a well-executed college horror film, director Vijesh manages to give Prakambanam a sense of uniqueness early on by weaving student politics and the mundanity of college life into the narrative, rather than simply creating one humorous moment after another. While the film is partly funny, thanks in particular to the impressive way in which Vijesh has mined the chaos of the settings, Prakambanam is one of those films that has too many problematic layers beneath its bright and hilarious surface.
In fact, there are several scenes and situations in Prakambanam where it seems like another sheet project that cunningly trashes progressive ideologies, particularly leftism, while presenting Brahmanism, and by extension Hindutva, as the ultimate and all-encompassing truth. For example, there is a scene in the film where Siddharth is preparing to deliver an election speech. Since he and his party members are widely considered lazy and troublemakers, there is already significant animosity toward them. When he comes on stage with his prepared speech containing too many complex terms (a running joke against leftists since the Sandesham era (1991), others start booing him. Meanwhile, ‘grandmother mode’ kicks in on punyalan and instead he delivers a speech invoking verses from the Bhagavad Gita, which appeals to everyone. In fact, the film portrays Siddharth winning the election solely because of this speech, without doing anything else.
Watch the trailer of Prakambanam here:
The left’s ridicule of Prakambanam and its placement of the sheet-ism as an ideal alternative does not stop there. From start to finish, the film shows leftists involved in everything crooked and hypocritical, while Chembakathamma acts as the ultimate torchbearer of parampara, pratishtha and anushasan. Although the makers have tried to play it safe by including one or two characters who belong to a political group similar to the Kerala Students Union (KSU), the student wing of the Congress, they are simply portrayed as harmless pranksters who are all talk and no action. On the contrary, only the Left shows ideological red in Prakambanam. For example, Raghavan, who bears a physical resemblance to certain real-life Marxist leaders in Kerala and initially advocates rationalism, is depicted suddenly abandoning ship and becoming a believer as soon as he realizes that his mother’s ghost is still present.
Story continues below this ad.
At the same time, the film also depicts university hostels as dens of immoral activities, particularly widespread substance abuse, and political party leaders and their spaces, especially those aligned with the left, as breeding grounds for such behavior. However, Prakambanam’s problems do not end with his disdain for the left or his attempts to portray students, in general, as aimless addicts; he even falls into random homophobia, apparently in order to “provide laughs.”
Must read | Mardaani 3 movie review: Rani Mukerji returns, but familiarity softens the impact
However, the twisted brilliance of director Vijesh and writer Sreehari lies in their ability to wrap all these problematic layers in the glossy foil of comedy, complemented by just the right amount of horror. The hilarious, chaotic climax featuring too many ghosts who have escaped from Stanislavski’s closet is one of the many moments the creators have managed to get right, which may lead some to overlook its political undertones.
Although Sagar Surya has admirably made sure to free himself from the image of his villain Don Sebastian. Pani (2024) gave him, without any indication of it appearing here, that his command of comedy needs to continue improving. It often seems like he’s trying too hard to be funny, and these attempts are obviously visible. Ganapathi once again proves that he can achieve anything he is trusted with. Ameen’s performance, particularly his handling of humor, deserves praise. Sheethal Joseph is also impressive as Punyalan’s girlfriend Vedhika.
Story continues below this ad.
However, Prakambanam’s biggest draw is its music, with Bibin Ashok (soundtrack) and Sankar Sharma (BGM) knocking it out of the park and elevating the film even as it stumbles. Sooraj ES’s editing is also top-notch, giving the visuals a mind-blowing pace and adding to the overall experience.
Prakambanam movie cast: Ganapathi, Sagar Surya, Ameen, Rajesh Madhavan, Sheethal Joseph, Kalabhavan Navas, PP Kunhi Krishnan, Azeez Nedumangad
Prakambanam movie director: Vijesh Panathur
Prakambanam Movie Rating: 2 stars