The pandemic situation has opened a few doors for creators, who have found some inspiration amidst this claustrophobic situation. The newly-released anthology Putham Pudhu Kaalai, currently streaming on Amazon Prime, uses the intimate confines for telling stories.
The omnibus consists of five short films directed by Sudha Kongara, Gautham Vasudev Menon, Suhasini Manirathnam, Rajiv Menon and Karthik Subbaraj (in the same order). The Sudha Kongara-directed, Ilamai Idho Idho, is a romantic comedy about a clandestine reunion between two former sweethearts (played by Jayaram and Urvasi). As the lockdown lets them enjoy the company of each other, a lost youth is regained (their younger versions are played by Kalidas Jayaram and Kalyani Priyadarshan).
With Ilamai.., PPK starts on a breezy note. The short film works primarily due to the cracking chemistry between Urvashi and Jayaram (which reminds you of their Panchathanthiram days) and the playful situations. The film captures the changing moods in a relationship in a grounded manner. Some of the remarkable stretches is the writer's ability to weave the character's individual imperfections into the film's key moments.
Gautham Vasudev Menon's Avarum Naanum, Avalum Naanum tells about the relationship between a working woman (played by Ritu Varma) and her tech-savvy scientist grandfather (M.S. Bhaskar), who hasn't played a major role in her childhood, barring a few reluctant meetings. As the pandemic forces her to acquaint her lonely maternal grandfather, they come to terms with their sour past. Though the plot feels like a throwback to Fazil's Poove Poochudava, the film has some good ice-breaking moments between the leads. Packed with some tongue-in-cheek observations about the new normal the short is bolstered by M.S. Bhaskar's empathetic performance as a vulnerable personality.
Suhasini Manirathnam's Coffee Anyone is a drama about three sisters (played by Suhasini, Anu Haasan and Shruti Haasan respectively), of which two of them reunite to look after their ailing mother while staying at the company of a loving, yet adamant father (played by Kathadi Ramamurthy) who insists on taking care of his wife at home. Despite a few melodramatic stretches, the film does give a satisfying reunion of souls.
In Rajiv Menon's Reunion, a drug-addict musician (played by Andrea) stays at the house of her school classmate, a third generation doctor (played by Sikkil Gurucharan) who lives along with his mother (played by Leela Samson). A middling segment in the anthology, Reunion redeems a bit with some character-revealing stretches, like the scene where the singer opens up to her friend about her drug addiction. The sequence shows some remarkable brevity.
But the best of the lot is reserved at the last, with Karthik Subbaraj's Miracle bringing the much-needed surprise element. A surreal heist comedy, the story is set within the director's universe of vintage cars, desperate men and a dejected filmmaker named Michael (a cheeky reference) and a new addition, a Godman. Every short film shines in its parting moment, the final twist, and Karthik Subbaraj delivers the punch in his inimitable style. The film goes beyond its limitations and also explores the economic implications of lockdown, a grey area that was left untouched by the other four stories.
PPK is mainly positive on the whole, with solid moments being strewn across some run-on-the mill dramas. But the anthology gives you a much-needed warmth.