Santosh Sivan made his name for giving the Indian cinemagoers some of the most eye-watering backdrops that Indian cinema has ever seen. Eye-watering here carrying the same sense that delicious food is mouth-watering. When he turned his hand to direction, you could expect that the movies would at least be visually pleasing, but with Urumi, it is not merely the backdrop that comes alive – the entire movie seems to be a shimmering, bubbling, frothing, rolling mix of poetry and visual art that, frankly, left me gasping at times. With the actors delivering emotion with the same fluidity that pervades their environs, the movie perfectly captures the essence of the actual “Urumi” – a sword with a blade that is not stiff, but instead springy, allowing it to be coiled and flicked – in short a sword whose natural thrust is along all three dimensions.
It is an intense movie that deals with history at several levels, but the sublime quality comes from the incredible leap that the director makes – bridging the beginnings of an imperial past with what is seen as the beginnings of an imperial future – the movie is very relevant in the contemporary political milieu of nexus after nexus depriving citizens of land and livelihood. Those three epitomes of the crux of human existence – Roti, kapda aur makaan (bread, cloth and housing) – are once again brought to the fore – in a far different setting and with far greater purpose.
While there are confessed liberties taken with the historical context, the movie admits to being more about the present than the past, and in this, it deserves rich kudos. Indeed, having followed the political chaos of Chhattisgarh with much empathy for the people caught between the State and the Anti-Statists – or Maoists, if you prefer – I was struck by the parallels that Urumi throws up. I was also struck by how the movie seemed to borrow context from Mani Ratnam’s Raavan, but where in Raavan Beera - the pseudo-titular protagonist - is brought low and shown in a villainous tint, in Urumi, the analogue of Beera (played superbly by Arya in a masterful cameo) becomes the inspiration for rebellion.
I was also glad to see Prabhu Deva back on screen - he is probably the human manifestation of fluidity - and it is this sheer choreography that makes even the goriest battle scene seem aesthetic. Sivan marries the bloodshed of the Kill Bill movies - of 300 - with the elegance of a Kathakali performance. Prithviraj's character courts Genelia's almost entirely via slashing enemy throats - with she responding equally in kind. Genelia's giggly expression gains a new dimension when she points out possible sites for trapping enemy soldiers with a glee that is chilling, yet disarming. Somebody please make her play Jhansi ki Rani!
For Santosh Sivan, for Arya, for Genelia, for Prabhu Deva – for India – please go watch Urumi. Oh, and watch out for the really sly Macbeth insertions :)
Movie details: Urumi
Release Year: 2011
Language: Malayalam
Director: Santosh Sivan
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