Dileep has always tried to come up with something novel whenever he has faced a slump at the box-office. He has even gone back to his mimicry days. He has succeeded in most endeavours through sheer tenacity and hard work. His Onam offering "Chandupottu", directed by his friend Lal Jose, is in the same league.
It is brave of the team behind "Chandupottu" to try out an effeminate character - Radhakrishnan - imitated by mimicry artists and comedians the world over. It is an achievement not to repeat that mistake and, at the same time, fight the stigma and prejudices attached to such people.
"Chandupottu" is a character-driven film. So the story has to take a backseat. Here also the story is designed (with all formulaic ingredients and even weaking them) in such a way as to offer the actor a platform to display his histrionic prowess.
The hero, who loves to paint his nails and use makeup, grows up with female friends. Conflict arises when he falls in love with a childhood friend. There is the ubiquitous villain who fancies the heroine and creates roadblocks for the lovers.
Dileep's performance is a tightrope walk. A slight underplaying or overdoing would have made it ridiculous or crude. He blends the feminine physicality with the emotional dexterity to near perfection.
Kudos to the writer Benny P. Nayarambalam for creating a character that has a depth that goes beyond the superficial.
In the times when wearing the tag of a metro-sexual male is a fashion statement, he gives an altogether different perspective to the gender bending equations. It has his stamp all over the film, which gives fuel to the argument whether a film is a director's medium or a writer's medium.
That does not mean that the efforts of director Lal Jose go unnoticed. He successfully limits himself to the scope of the story and gives us a film that is crisp and fresh in its treatment.
Gopika as the leading lady utilises her chance to show off her charm with an unobtrusive screen presence. The chemistry of the lead pair is also worth a special mention.
Lal (also the producer of the movie) as the father of Dileep tries to bring out the pain and humiliation of having a progeny laughed at by society. But his characterization has its limitations. The same goes for Indrajith as Komban Kumaran, as a stereotypical villain is just used as a prop to create conflict.
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