CHILDREN LIVE UP TO WHAT WE BELIEVE OF THEM

“Humanity has the stars in its future, and that future is too important to be lost under the burden of juvenile folly...,” said Isaac Asimov very insightfully. "ಮೈತ್ರಿ" ('mythri', which translates to 'Alliance') is a 2015 critically-acclaimed Kannada film, which won awards for its strong social message about our crumbling juvenile justice system. The film was remade in Malayalam as “My Hero - Mythri”.

The plot is centred around Siddarama (Adithya Bharadwaj N), an impoverished, slum-dwelling boy. The intelligent child lives with his single mother, who works hard to make both ends meet. A big fan of actor, Puneeth Rajkumar, the little fella shares his scrapbook with the matinee idol during the shooting of a film. But then, an innocent prank gets the kid on the wrong side of law. His mother seeks the help of Gooli Prathapa (Ravi Kale), a gangster, who not only runs a human trafficking racket, but also has political ambitions.

Once Siddarama is released from police custody, philandering Gooli eyes Siddarama's mother lecherously. A 'time jump' in the screenplay shows the adolescent serving a term in a juvenile justice home. The warden of the penitentiary, Ravi Prakash (Atul Kulkarni), is a strict disciplinarian. As the tale progresses, Siddarama gets selected as a contestant in a Puneeth-hosted reality show and goes on to be a step away from winning Rs.1 crore.

But then, Mahadev Ghodke (Mohanlal), a DRDO scientist requests Puneeth not to take the show further as Siddarama had murdered his son; Puneeth refuses to pay heed to the advice. How Siddarama's TV appearance gets impacted consequent to the revelation makes for suspenseful drama.

BM Giriraj has penned the script with tremendous care and compassion. The creativity in the plot is packed with REALISM; it is artistically balanced and passionately executed. The icing on the cake is the social message, which is bound to find universal appeal. The narrative integrates a wide spectrum of emotions, which immersively engulf the viewer– from joy, mirth, relief and excitement to pain, fear, disgust and sadness...all portrayed realistically. Director Giriraj though has gone overboard with crude depiction and over-dramatisation of some scenes in the first half.

The thought-provoking, conceptually-compelling film boasts a great starcast. Puneeth Rajkumar is STELLAR; so too thespian, Mohanlal. Ravi Kamble, Atul Kulkarni and others too are exceptional in their supporting roles. The flick is excellent technically– doyen Ilaiyaraaja has scored great music. AV Krishna Kumar's camera work is commendable.

Giriraj encapsulates reality within the fantasy playing on the silver screen– he uses a brand of story-telling that is believable and suspenseful too. A magical masterpiece, the art-meets-mainstream flick blends the commercial with the experimental.

In a nutshell, this film is a more polished, aesthetic and immersive version of “Slumdog Millionnaire”; and, it is sans the Oscar-winning film's crass commercial content!

It is UNMISSABLE for every drama-craving movie-goer.

I rate it: 8.5 on 10!


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