Indie Malayalam films are the shiz right now; why that is is evident from this delightful little drama focusing on two girls and their perspective about living in a man's world.
Achu (Anna Fathima) and Anagha (Shyam Bhavi) are two close friends and schoolmates studying in grade six. While Achu hails from a financially weak background, Anagha is torn between her parents' rough divorce. However, they are worried about neither of these things. There is something else that is bothering them. Each one of their classmates have visited a shopping mall and a beach, except for them, and the need of the forced action to raise their hands lest they be the only minority when a teacher asks the class about the fun existential trivia as to who all have casually visited these two places makes these two young girls to take the decision. The decision to bunk off from school one day and visit these places with the money they have stashed in their piggies.
Achu is a naturally inquisitive girl while Anagha partially shares her friend's interests and beliefs. Achu is confused why there is a seemingly huge inequality between how men and women behave in the world, and is frustrated when her uneducated parents fail to make her understand the reality and their whys. The bunking of classes to visit the mall and the beach is, therefore, a way of not accepting the usual norms of lifestyle for women laid out by the society. Achu knows this when she suggests this idea to her friend as Anagha tags along, happy to be away from her mother's incessant nagging.
The first half is a brilliant essay about the innocent mind of the young. The second half goes periodic and takes us two decades later relative to the aftermath of their unguided excursion. And then things take a clichéd and preachy turn. While the thought behind making such a film is justified, a preachy climax plays with its overall appeal, making the audience get unenthusiastic. Nevertheless, the film has enough credit to make it an enjoyable watch about a social theme.
The child artistes, especially Fathima, are brilliant in their acts. It is the elder actors who play the adult versions who look like amateurs in front of these talented girls. Even the supporting cast do a fine job at making this film realistic and to the point. There is no stray humor or cheap jokes that deviate from the primary subject. The dialogues, the writing, the setup, and the performance are all lined to make it an enticing watch that will touch your heart.
BOTTOM LINE: Debutante Jeo Baby's "2 Penkuttikal" is an enjoyable watch about two curious young girls portrayed by two talented young girls as they set out finding the course which shaped their feminine lives the way it is. Rent a DVD.
Can be watched with a typical Indian family? YES
