Kuttimaa – Self Explanatory!

Why would you pay to watch a short-film when you know that you can watch thousands of them for free in YouTube? The answer is Kuttimaa! A brilliant work of art, I still believe that is what cinema is, by Ganesh Kumar Mohan in his distinctive narrative and directional style is what sets Kuttimaa apart from hundreds of short films that gets made every day. What distinctive style? I’ll get to that.

Music, Background Score, Sound Mixing and Editing:  Don’t know how many of you have watched Ganesh’s 536, because that is when you notice his brilliance in choosing the right soundtrack for every scene. Yes, yes; that very scene when the movie’s title starts rolling along with the drumbeats. Then came O4P and those well-placed Goundamani dialogues. Kuttimaa is no different, and things get better because the scores here are original. Sharavan, the film’s music composer, has done full justice to the theme. How do I know that? Frankly, I have no idea but guess that is how movie reviews are supposed to be written and that such words are part of the standard movie-review template! The songs from the movie, though short, have been constantly ringing in the ears, which is proof enough. Gunasekaran and Shravan, who have lent their voices for the songs complements the tunes. Vairabarathi’s lyrics have ameliorated them, way the words rhyme beautifully. A special mention for sound mixing, to Abhinav Sunder Nayak and Raj Kumar who captured them all – people chattering, the train whistling, temple bells ringing etc., the very ordinary sounds of a village, the cacophony of a village and turned them an artful resonance called Kuttimaa. Abhinav dons the editor’s cap with equal finesse. Subash’s end-credits title animation ensures that the scenes from the movie stay in your heart for some more time.

Cinematography, Camera and Location:  The camera rests safe in the hands of KB Prabhu, who has done his best to capture the beauty of Pollachi and Trichy to the viewer’s delight. As the crane rises up, capturing Kuttimaa, Krish and the entire maize fields in the frame, you can’t help but trail along the pathway into their beautiful home situated amidst the fields. Looking through KB’s eyes, just another village transforms into something irresistibly beautiful. A pat on the back of those who found these beautiful locations for KB to aim his lenses at.

Casting and Dubbing:  KR Rangamma (Kuttimaa) makes the protagonist and his lady interest look like what they exactly are – kids; kids before her acting prowess and her effortless style of dialogue delivery. Yes Kay Durai and Shweta Gupta (Krish and Sruthi) make sure that they don’t shy away before the ‘old lady’, by putting their best feet forward. You can’t miss the innocent look Yes Kay manages to carry along as much as you can’t miss Shweta’s attempt to fit in as a Tamil girl, which they both do convincingly well. That Shweta looks gorgeous is anybody’s guess and so does her voice, which in this movie belongs to Tanuja Babu. (YesKay should wait till some girl writes a review, to get his due!) For now, let me give the due credit to Ganesh, for bringing along the right cast – the seemingly mean ‘Kannadi Periyappa’, the caring doctor Vinod etc., all fitting perfectly into the script.

Story, Screenplay, Dialogue and Direction: This is where things become a one-man show, the Ganesh Kumar stamp visible across the frame of every shot. Like any other director, he might disagree but we all know who calls the final shots. When our society is fast becoming nuclear and the grandparents are being discarded as excess baggage, Ganesh does his part by highlighting few points. Ganesh’s Brindavan treads similar path and it shows how much the director is committed for a cause. The dialogues never miss to hit the right note in the viewer’s mind; like when Kuttiamma asks Krish why he seems to have time to talk to everyone in the whole wide world but not her. That is when you realize you need to make some phone calls too. Conveyed in jest, it doesn’t miss the target – all of us who are too busy with ostensible complexities of our lives that we hardly care to feel the palms of those who have been holding our hands all this while, making sure we don’t slip or fall down. It wets your eyes even though you find yourself smiling, that you immediately pick up the phone and make few calls to enquire when her medicines need refill. And the conversation continues, with her complaining about how there is very little water in the paddy fields or that there is too much water in the groundnut fields. The call gets disconnected, only for us to carry on with our presumably busy lives.

Dhaarunika Ambedkar, by entrusting her faith in Ganesh Kumar and team to make good use of her money unquestionably knows how to nurture talent. It is because of people like her that we get to see worthwhile movies like Kuttimaa.

Kuttimaa has now arrived at the comforts of your digital screens at a price which is only a fraction of what you might spent for a third decoction coffee at Cafe Coffee Day. Make it a point to watch it, by paying; because it is not every day that you get chance to support such talented people who deserve more just than a pat on their back.