Pramod
Payyannur's
Balyakalasakhi,
the
cinematic
adaptation
of
Vaikom
Muhammad
Basheer's
well
known
novel
of
the
same
name,
with
Mammootty
and
Isha
Talwar
in
the
lead
is
a
near
excellent
adaptation
of
the
novel
backed
with
some
wonderful
performances.
Story
Balyakalasakhi
is
a
pure
love
story
revolving
around
Majeed
(Mammootty)
and
Suhra
(Isha
Talwar)
which
begins
from
their
childhood.
The
movie
begins
with
Majeed
searching
a
job
in
Kolkata.
He
loses
his
money
and
bag
on
the
way,
but
is
helped
by
Selvi
(Seema
Biswas)
,
who
introduces
him
to
Ameen
Sahib
(Sasikumar).
Ameen
Sahib
gives
Majeed
a
job
in
his
press.
Majeed
meets
Shabnam
(Thanusree
Ghosh)
,
daughter
of
Ameen
Sahib
and
Praful
(Preim
Sheikh),
a
rebel
and
a
writer.
Rest
of
the
story
deals
with
the
flashback
of
the
love
story
between
Majeed
and
Suhra
and
how
and
where
life
takes
them.
Performances
Mammootty,
in
his
double
role
of
Majeed
and
his
father
is
the
pick
among
many.
He
has
enacted
the
character
of
Majeed
to
near
perfection.
Isha
Talwar
as
Suhra
has
improved
much
from
her
earlier
films
and
has
come
out
good.
Rest
of
the
cast
including
Seema
Biswas,
Sasikumar,
Thanusree
Ghosh,
Meena
(Majeed's
mother),
Preim
Sheikh,
Sunil
Sukhada
(Avaraan),
Kavitha
Nair
(Suhra's
mom),
Mamukkoya
(Narayana
Pilla)
have
done
full
justice
to
their
roles.
Also
special
mention
goes
to
Parambrata
Chatterjee
and
other
young
and
child
artists.
Technical
Aspects
Cinematography
by
Hari
Nair
is
near
flawless.
He
has
captured
the
scenic
beauty
of
the
village
and
the
streets
of
Kolkata
with
much
brilliance.
Music
by
the
late
legend
Raghavan
Master
and
Shahabaz
Aman
is
a
treat
for
music
lovers.
All
songs,
especially
Thamarapponkavanathil
and
Kalam
Parakkanu
are
sure
to
live
long
in
the
mind
of
music
lovers.
For
the
cinematic
version,
Pramod
Payyannur
have
done
a
lot
of
compromise.
The
first
half
which
leaves
us
spellbound
doesn't
have
that
charm
in
the
second
half.
Though
the
movie
was
said
to
be
for
120
minutes,
it
has
further
been
cut
short.
Editing
also
seems
bit
faltered
as
many
sequences
have
been
unexpectedly
cut
short.
Still,
Pramod
Payyannur
can
be
proud
of
making
such
a
good
movie
of
such
a
heart
warming
love
story
written
by
a
legend.