Bayamariya Brammai Movie Review : A puzzling film that doesn't enthral but certainly manages to pique your interest

Bayamariya Brammai Movie Synopsis: Jagadish, a man who has killed 96 people, and Kabilan, a writer, indulge in a conversation sitting on either side of the prison bars. The film takes on a different dimension as they dwell on Jagadish’s past.

Bayamariya Brammai Movie Review: What an ideal movie-watching experience signifies is different for different people. Some prefer watching a film that makes them debate and deliberate long after it’s over, while others would rather watch something that is easily comprehensible. Concisely speaking, Bayamariya Brammai falls into the former category. But, many a time, as an audience, we tend to slot a film as a first-rate watch when it leaves you puzzled. To put it bluntly, this Rahul Kabali directorial might turn out to be one such film.

A lot happens in this film and this attribute works for and against it. Of course, to the film’s credit, it glides ahead without making a fuss. The makers don’t pinpoint that such and such has happened to get a reaction out of the audience. Conversely, Bayamariya Brammai chooses to progress in a rather understated manner. Also, this is that rare film after seeing which each person’s perspective as to what happened wouldn’t be the same. Much like the different perspectives this film takes us through, the audience will also come out with different standpoints.

Bayamariya Brammai initially introduces us to two characters—a writer named Kabilan and Jagadish, a man who has killed 96 people in 25 years. While Kabilan wrote his first book in 1987, Jagadish committed his first murder in 1978. While Kabilan is sitting in a chair outside the prison bars as an accomplished writer, Jagadish is sitting on the floor behind bars for killing multiple people. As different as their lives are, Jagadish tries to draw a parallel between them. The film then delves into Jagadish’s past and takes us through the killings that he committed.

But, even though we are digging into the past of a man who has taken close to a hundred lives, we never get a clear sense of who he is. Maybe a reason that this film doesn’t register is because we never really get a sense of the characters. The complexity of the film might be used as an excuse or a justification for this. But a film's complexity isn’t a rationale for us being unresponsive or indifferent to the characters and their actions. It comes across as if the predominant intention of the makers was just to try something distinct or unique. And, truth be told, they have triumphed in achieving that. But they have done so without duly establishing the character of Jagadish.

With that said, the film deserves credit for holding its ground as well as for some very interesting touches. One of them is the inclusion of an androgynous character. In the film, a woman essays one stage of a primary character’s life, à la Cate Blanchett as Bob Dylan in I'm Not There. How the makers present this character perfectly reflects how they have treated the film as well. An interesting idea is bogged down because of the larger proceedings and the excessive bumpiness in the plot.

As one stellar actor after the other inhabits the world of Bayamariya Brammai, the acting department is possibly the most profound part of the film. But the acting of the cast, the story being unfolded through chapters or even the long uninterrupted conversations don’t aid the film. All said and done, this is a film that doesn’t enthral but surely manages to pique your interest.