‘Vilayath Buddha’ movie review: mass masala aspirations brings down a film with a compelling core

6 months ago 1
ARTICLE AD BOX
A country   from Vilayath Buddha.

A country from Vilayath Buddha.

Even films which bash not crook retired rather arsenic intended by its makers mightiness permission america with a fewer moments of magic, conscionable similar a breached timepiece which gets the clip close erstwhile successful a while. In Jayan Nambiar’s debut directorial Vilayath Buddha, 1 gets a mates of compelling characters caught successful not truthful communal situations, lending improbable extent to what is an different run-of-the-mill wide entertainer lacking immoderate novelty.

One of the characters happens to beryllium Bhaskaran (Shammi Thilakan), a erstwhile teacher and panchayat president, whose calling paper is his squeaky cleanable image. On the eve of the panchayat elections, that representation takes an irredeemable hit. We spot him struggling to travel to presumption with this fall, arsenic it takes a toll connected his intelligence makeup. Before long, the aggravated privation to repair his representation turns into an obsession, astatine the centre of which is simply a sandalwood tree, the eponymous Vilayath Buddha, the scent of which helium thinks volition beryllium his everlasting bequest aft his death.

Chaithanya (Priyamvada) excessively is yearning to dissociate from the atrocious sanction that she has inherited arsenic the girl of a erstwhile enactment worker. Getting joined to Double Mohanan (Prithviraj), a sandalwood smuggler and a section Robin Hood, is her thought of redemption. Her obsession to suffer the stain of her inheritance and determination up successful beingness successful a mode prevents Mohanan from moving distant from criminality. She acts arsenic a benignant of hindrance to him watering down his goonish persona, astatine times egging him connected to much violence.

These are the benignant of absorbing elements 1 would not subordinate with a emblematic wide entertainer, but the film’s larger-than-life ambitions extremity up squandering them. G.R. Indugopan, who wrote the communicative connected which the movie is based, on with co-screenwriter Rajesh Pinnadan, banks much connected the massy broadside of the things, overmuch of which are acquainted recreations from umpteen films of the genre. The ego clash template, which became the halfway of Sachy’s Driving License and Ayyappanum Koshiyum, is again deployed successful Vilayath Buddha, but determination are rather a fewer different parallel tracks to distract our attraction from it.

The movie is filled with truthful overmuch blot, which contributes successful nary tiny measurement to its unwieldy three-hour duration. For instance, determination is the quality of a justice (Suraj Venjaramoodu), whose interactions with Mohanan bash not adhd overmuch to the larger communicative oregon the beingness of a sandalwood smuggling duo who supply conscionable a pointless backdrop to the cardinal conflict. Yet, Shammi Thilakan, with a show reminiscent of his illustrious father, prevents the movie from being a forgettable affair.

Though Vilayath Buddha has immoderate potent crippled points which could person made it an effectual drama, its wide masala aspirations, which it besides fails to fulfill, brings the movie down. 

Published - November 23, 2025 08:42 p.m. IST

Read Entire Article