Camel Safari Review

A decade back, Jayaraj was one director who, with his meticulous precision in crafting art house and commercial films at the same time, was looked upon as the best in the circuit in to excel in both the genres. He was a National Award winner and successful creator of films that ran well in theatres regularly. A decade from his debut as a producer  with New Generation Cinema, he seems to be lost as one director dumbstruck with unknown ways to prove himself. Jayaraj's latest 'Camal Safari' is another movie to add to his flop list satisfying none, the critics or the commercial movie lovers.

Set in the deserts of Rajastan, the movie offers plenty of landscapes and unknown `havelis' but is quite definite in its narrative plans and story lines. The movie is told as narrated by James Kallarackal (Shekher Menon,) a music DJ and a Management student  in a function organised to celebrate some feat. He is there to tell us about how a young lady who fell in  love takes strides to reach out to her man.

All the trouble starts as the six men gang Dhiya, Sivakumar, hashim, Yamini and  Catherine are  suspended from the college for coming into classes in a drunken state . Since Yamini, a Rajput who is hailing form Rajastan has her sister's marriage slated next week, the gang plans to have a trip to Rajastan in these suspended days. Dhiya (Pankaja Menon) the most caring lady in the group, accidentally sees Pavan while a pickpocket tries to nab her purse in a market . Pavan saves her and returns her money which makes her falls for him in the first glance. She also finds her to be a son of an influential  Takur, who rules the area. Pavan who is already into a child marriage with Poonam, develops a liking for Dhiya.  How they ends up in love and marriage forms the uneventful final reels.

Scripted by Thomas Thoppilkudi, the movie hardly has a storyline that is fresh or unpredictable. With plenty of freshers in the castlines, who hardly make use of the limited support offered by the scripts, the movie is a big let down with no interesting sequences. Apart from introducing the   Rajastan backdrops, sand dunes  and multihued dress codes , there is nothing that you could take home from this film.

The acting sides are also pretty average  with the poor technical qualities. The only highlight of the film seems to be half a dozen songs by Deepankuran, which is but pasted on the most unwanted , predicable scenes and sequences. And as usual, Jayaraj who had made it a habit to shoot under budget is often seen repeating shots to somehow fill all these songs and to make the film anywhere to a acceptable length of one hour and fifty minutes.

This `Camal Safary; is sure to test your patience, much more than if you are left stranded in an isolated desert looking for some impossible  way to get out of the mess. Stay home to avoid the intense heat out there, of deserts  like this which offer you nothing in the name of entertainment.

Rating - 3/10