Sarvam Thaala Mayam Review
Star Cast : GV Prakash, Nedumudi Venu, Vineeth, Aparna
Director : Rajiv Menon
Sarvam Thaala Mayam is a deliciously presented, soothing, feel-good musical, a genre that we rarely watch in Tamil.
It has everything going for it - story is stunning and real, characters are ordinary & utterly believable, performances are superb, music is awesome and direction is brilliant. Rajiv Menon who is back after eighteen years as a director largely depends on two solid characters —Vembu Iyer (Nedumudi Venu) and Peter Johnson (GV Prakash) to narrate this beautiful story!
Vembu Iyer is an old school Mridangam expert who is unable to adapt to the changes in the modern music scene. Peter Johnson wants to break the gate and enter into the world of Carnatic music which is being ruled by the upper-class community. After mutually admiring each other’s talent, these two passionate musicians understand that music is omnipresent—Sarvam Thaala Mayam!
Generally, in musical films, the conflict actually would happen between the guru and shishya but here despite their different upbringings, they have mutual admiration which makes Sarvam Thaala Mayam a gem.
All the actors in the film are brilliant, the casting is just perfect. Nedumudi Venu as the mridangam vidwan is fabulous- his conversation with disciples, his ego, frustrations, eccentricities and small nuances that he comes up with are a delight. It is another milestone in this amazing actor's journey.
GV Prakash is earnest and sincere! Being a music composer himself, the way Prakash handles musical instruments look authentic and as a performer too, he has improved leaps and bounds. We love Peter the innocent boy-next-door and that becomes the biggest strength of the film. Kumaravel who plays GV Prakash’s dad has once again delivered a commendable performance. Dhivyadarshini as the TV anchor is perfect casting while Aparna Balamurali is a promising find.
What works in favor of the film is the manner in which Rajiv Menon has passionately portrayed the music scenario in Tamilnadu in a realistic manner. His characters are not particularly black and white, they have their own flaws and humane side just like anyone of us. There is no needless glorification of one particular community and at the same time, the director has not targeted the other section. He simply captures the emotions of his actors, their situations and leave it to the audiences to judge!
The direction's brilliant. Deft, yet deep.
Yes, Mani (Vineeth)’s character has grey shades but that is the beauty of Rajiv's writing. The reality show episodes look a bit contrived and the journey of GV Prakash to learn various forms of music is shown in a hurry... which could’ve been captured with more depth! But these are minor flaws in an otherwise beautiful, complete, moving experience.
Technically, Sarvam Thaala Mayam is the best work of Rahman in recent times, he shines in the poignant ’Sarvam Thaala Mayam’ track and ‘Dingu Dongu’ number conveys the rise of the oppressed community and their pain without being preachy. The composer’s background score is also impressive. Cinematographer Ravi Yadav hasn’t done any gimmicks, he simply followed his characters and captures their emotions, which is indeed the beauty of the film. Editing by Anthony is fish-bone sharp and the flow is quite organic. The run-time is also just perfect (131 minutes). Sync sound makes the characters real and one among us.
Overall, Sarvam Thaala Mayam is the best musical made in Tamil cinema. It's simple, uncomplicated storytelling leaves a smile on your face. It is a bittersweet tale of human frailties, a small film with a very big heart. Watch it because gems like these are hard to find.
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