Napoleon: History is made up of lies agreed upon... Actor Dileep's multi-starrer Kammara Sambhavam is all about history and how fabricated sometimes it turns out to be. Directed by debutant Rathish Ambat and written by Murali Gopy, the film has Siddharth, Bobby Simha, Murali Gopy, Namitha Pramod and Swetha Menon other than Dileep. It is the first film to be released after Dileep's jail time in connection with the infamous actress assault case, and according to Dileep, it is during that time the makers fixed the splendid bearded look in the second half of the film.
Kammara is nor true history neither a straightforward and simple story, but the important thing to understand is the concept of fabricated history before watching Kammara Sambhavam. The concept that the whole truth was never recorded in history and that it was often mixed with lies to help people in power to concrete their position and spread their propaganda. The plot of the movie revolves around Kammaran Nambiar, his true story and the story that spread. It is placed in both the pre-independence era and the present and has many legendary freedom fighters intervened in the screenplay.
The screenplay is the biggest strength of Kammara Sambhavam. Murali Gopy has brought out the best in himself. The game of perspectives has been dealt neatly and thus the film is something that Malayalam Cinema has never seen before. The direction is of top class, especially in the first half. The only negative point is the duration. The film is a 3-hour long watch and if it had been reduced by half an hour by trimming the second half, it would have produced a perfect engaging version. Seldom does an actor gets a chance to play roles with two different character traits. Here, writer Murali Gopy has given almost every actor to play roles with two set character traits, and that is a once in a lifetime opportunity.
Dileep's different looks and quality acting is the fuel that burns Kammaran bright as the sun. He is the perfect mixture of Mass and Class. Siddharth is an actor of great calibre and Kammara Sambhavam is the perfect example of his versatility. They are two pillars on which the whole movie has been built on. They have been supported well by Bobby Simha, Murali Gopy, and Namitha Pramod. Indrans, Vijayaraghavan, and Siddique have shined in the limited time space thay they have got.
Cinematography and background score of the movie is some of the best work seen in Malayalam. While Sunil KS has succeeded in creating the pre-independence era successfully with his lighting, the master craftsman Gopi Sunder succeeds in creating the chill and thrill with his powerful BGM. The songs in the film, unfortunately, do not fly as high as the other elements of the film. Overall Kammara Sambhavam has a splendid first half and an experimental second half.