Ace cinematographer Santosh Sivan is known for providing us with a visual treat. Apart from handing the camera he has also wielding the megaphone for Urumi, which is a historical fiction. The movie is visually stunning while the story is though provoking and message oriented.
Storyline:
Krishna Das (Prithviraj) is struggling to make both ends meet. He is running a music troupe in Goa along with his friend (Prabhu Deva).
One fine day a group of people from a multi national mining company come to meet him with an unexpected offer. They want his sign to sell his ancestral property in Kerala leased out to a NGO by his late mother. Since the lease period is over, he has all the right to sell it. The place is rich in minerals and hence the MNC is eyeing for it.
Krishna Das is delighted. Actually he is not aware of the property. He is on cloud nine and willing to sign. But there is a catch. The document has to be signed by another person, who is mentally ill (Genelia). There are more problems. He has to convince the NGO people and the tribal community living there to vacate.
He goes to the area to try and sell the place. He meets the NGO and gets to know their objection. The person who runs the NGO (Vidya Balan) explains him about the potential dangers of starting mining work in the area.
The tribal leader (Arya) makes him aware of his heritage. Krishna’s ancestors had fought to protect the land and its culture from the clutches of foreigners.
Cut to the past. The tribal leader tells the story of Chirakkal Kelu Nayanar (Prithviraj), who lived in 15th century. The martial arts expert fought furiously to eliminate Vasco da Gama and free his land of foreign occupation. He had the support of his childhood Muslim buddy Vavvali (Prabhu Deva).
In the journey he meets warrior princess Ayesha (Genelia), who fights against the foreign invaders.
Will they be able to kill Vasco Da Gama and his ruthless son? The foreigners have newly found weapons like pistols and canons. Can Kelu, Vavvali, and Ayisha succeed against them?
Script Analysis
Though Urumi is set in the backdrop of Indian history, the script of the movie is inspired by many international films that fall in this genre, i.e., native people’s fight against invasion and exploitation. Urumi is also not a historical film in its true sense. The Vasco da Gama incident has been made as a story with the help of many folklores and legends.
The director has ensured that the movie is politically correct. The movie reflects secularist ideals and the unity in diversity of India. Thankfully the director and the scriptwriter have not gone overboard in projecting these things. They have given importance to the story element and the thrill of fighting against the invaders.
The dialogues sound rhetoric in some places but overall they go with the mood of the story without disturbing the flow. The local king, his song and his minister angle has been well narrated. The plots involving the two princesses (Genelia and Nithya) are interesting.
Some characters have not been developed well. For example, Vidya Balan’s character is quite unwarranted. Her much-hyped cameo and item song fails to impress. Tabu’s appearance in a song too looks out of place.
The script doesn’t have the surprising element. Many turning points are is predictable. The tribal leader’s preaching sound odd.
Cast and crew
Urumi has the Santosh Sivan’s unique style through out. The movie is a visual treat to say the least. But some of the shots depicting the characters look odd, as they seem to be frozen stills on screen.
The fighting sequences have been choreographed well by Anal Arasu.
Deepak Dev’s background score is good but his tunes are not inspiring.
Prithviraj has developed his physique well to suit the role. He has worked a lot to look a warrior. His body language fits the character well. His Tamil diction leaves much to be desired.
Prabhu Deva looks cool and acts with ease. Though he doesn’t impress in terms of emoting he is impressive in fighting sequences. His fighting looks like an artistic expression of a warrior.
Genelia D’Souza, as the warrior princess Aysha, breathe fire. The pretty girl does full justice to the role with her amazing effort.
Nithya Menon does wel in emotional scenes. Vidya Balan looks awesome but she gets a poorly etched character and hence she is not able to make any mark.
Positive points
Visual quality, fast moving script, and fighting sequences.
Negative points:
Predictable turning points, not-so-exciting music, and too much political correctness.
Verdict:
The entire team has put in a lot of efforts to make Urumi is an enjoyable fare.
