Medulla Oblongata is the directorial debut of Suresh Nair, the brother of yesteryear heroines Ambika and Radha, and it is also the first Malayalam production of the established Kollywood production house Vendhar Movies. It is a remake of the Tamil comedy Naduvula Konjam Pakkatha Kaanom.
The movie which stars Rahul Madhav and Avaana in the lead roles, tells the story of four friends who are faced with a bizarre situation when one of them, due to an event, loses his short term memory. This happens the day before a marriage and how the friends deal with it and move forward makes up the rest of the plot. Sounds tragic?
Well, it’s really not – the narrative which picks up after the event and its effect (based on a true incident apparently) is a rollercoaster of laughs with the subsequent happenings rich in comedic fodder and clever jokes.
The movie, which came out a few days ago, started off in rather slow at the box office but now it looks like good ‘word of mouth’ recommendations from thrilled viewers have given this little movie a good shot at making its mark at the box office. A commendable feat indeed, considering the movie released amidst huge controversies going on in the industry and big name brands hogging much of the spotlight.
The crew also decided to go another way with their PR strategies and distributed helmets to drivers of two wheelers making a social contribution and hyping the movie at the same time. An intelligent move considering the massive and high end promo tactics employed by some ‘mega flicks’ to no avail, in the past few months.
In any case, a good maiden venture for director Suresh Nair and if this is a sign of things to come, the newcomer might be here to stay.
