For those who do not know about Manju Warrier or haven’t seen
her movies, I will recommend to immediately do some googling. She is one of the
finest actors of our times. Her movies never disappoint.
“How Old Are You” is a story of a
UD Clerk, Nirupama Rajeev. Nirupama, is a woman going about her life nonchalantly.
She is a mother of a fourteen-year-old daughter, living with her husband and
in-laws. Life has no interests beyond the clerical job and taking care of the family.
Aimless and dreamless, Nirupama exists.
The husband, Rajeev (Konchako
Boban) is fed up of his wife whose sole preoccupation is what to cook for
breakfast. He gets a chance to go to Ireland and applies for a visa making it
abundantly clear that he will not be able take Nirupama, unless she gets herself
a job. Unfortunately, Nirupama is unable to get one. Meanwhile, The President
of India visits Kerala and Nirupama’s daughter gets a chance to ask him a question.
The president is impressed wants to meet the person who taught her this, and
that person turns out to be Nirupama. She is all set to meet the President for
breakfast. Unfortunately, with all the hype, the meeting doesn’t go well and Nirupama
becomes the laughing stock of social media.
Amongst all the chaos, Rajeev
leaves with Lakshmi (the daughter) for Ireland, telling Nirupama that he doesn’t
trust her upbringing.
Meanwhile, Nirupama’s college
friend, Susan David manages to find he through all the social media hype and
visits her. She reminds Nirupama of the dreamer that Nirupama was in college
and encourages her to find that aspect of her life once again.
Nirupama has on organic terrace
garden which gets noticed and she gets to supply organic vegetable for a 2000
people marriage. How she finds her determination and resolve and becomes an
ideal for her daughter as well as the world, is the basic story of the movie.
Roshan Andrrews (also directed Udayananu Tharam) , the director of
the movie has done a superb job in telling a tale of a woman caught in the social
mores and the expectations of the world from her. A subtle and yet powerful
depiction of how a woman can lose her self-respect and forget what she is
capable of, because people around her treat her like a condiment. It’s not a
lecture in feminism. It’s about a person believing in themselves to leave their
mark on this world. The film also remains relatively fast paced and doesn’t
succumb to melodrama or histrionics at any point.
And what a comeback movie for
Manju Warrier. She has played the part to perfection. All kudos to her for not
letting the film become a cliché.
A perfect watch for a slow
weekday.
Do Watch.
