‘Bethlehem Kudumba Unit’ and the Serious Art of Feeling Good

I think Girish A.D. has knocked it out of the park with Bethlehem Kudumba Unit (BKU). Is there any other Indian director who can tackle feel-good material with a feel-good tone that's not only thoroughly sustained and consistent but also never dampened by moments of heartbreak, conflict, and weepy sentiment? If there is one, I can't think of them at the moment. Girish's achievement, though, isn't limited to this feel-good tone. What makes him special is how he uses this very tone to give his film's serious moments greater force. He doesn't believe in sacrificing the easy-breezy energy of his story in order to make the melodramatic scenes land harder. I don't know how, but he manages to remain peppy and cheerful even when what's happening on screen is deeply poignant. What's remarkable is that this poignancy isn't in any way diluted by all the cheerful peppiness. Girish might just be one of those rare filmmakers who can seamlessly integrate heavy emotions into movies that move with an effortless charm. He is a winsome jester who means business; he is a charmer who doesn't think a gentle comedy should use its lighthearted atmosphere as an excuse to infantilize itself.

And who can be better than Mamitha Baiju to serve as the very symbol, the very expression of this playful atmosphere? Her cute, babyish face always flirts with the camera. Baiju's smile, as bright as the sun, adds to the casual, free-flowing rhythm that Girish goes for. Even her pouts, her winks, and her sadness beautifully integrate into the very tone of the film instead of sticking out as live-action emojis bouncing on the screen and waiting for your acknowledgment. Cast a lesser actor opposite her, and you do risk turning Baiju into a cartoonish attraction cycling through various colorful facial expressions for the audience's amusement. Thankfully, Girish casts Baiju opposite Nivin Pauly in BKU, who, as Justin Davis, looks especially cute when, inside his car, he tells Ashley (Baiju), "Miss you." Pauly comes across as a sweet, fluffy teddy bear in this role. Fearing that someone will catch him with Ashley and expose their secret relationship, Justin behaves all fidgety around her inside a store and even tries to cover her in front of a CCTV camera. But this teddy bear also knows when to turn violent to protect his friends and his people. There are good, lively action sequences in BKU—the camera tracks a rocket during a movie screening event—but that liveliness, too, jells with the film's easygoing mood.

Hold on a second. Why does Justin want to keep his and Ashley's romance a secret? Well, because of the age gap. This is not the first movie this year starring Baiju in which she ends up falling for a man older than the age of her character. She found herself in the same situation in Vishwanath & Sons, where she was paired opposite Suriya. But Venky Atluri's family drama is idiotically conservative. It doesn't have anything meaningful to say about the age gap. Girish, on the other hand, has a clear perspective. Unlike the timid Atluri, he doesn't hesitate to give voice to his progressive ideas. Justin and Ashley do end up together, and that union is the very stuff of a dreamy romance—a love story worthy of awws and warm hugs. Girish is unabashedly romantic, and he infuses even minor affectionate gestures and reactions with a grand, sweeping elegance. When Justin finally acknowledges his love for Ashley and drops her outside a church, she climbs its stairs with such elation that her legs seem to be floating in the air. She looks as if she were levitating in love, and her happiness is infectious enough to put your own head in the clouds.

Girish absorbs you so completely into the daily lives of his characters that the humor effortlessly emerges from ordinary interactions. When Glikson (Roshan Shanavas), on a bus, introduces himself to Ashley by constantly repeating his name in front of her, she thinks Glikson is probably the name of an insect, and so she quickly checks her surroundings cautiously while asking, "Where?" When Ashley goes to Justin's house to pick up her laptop and he tells her to take lentil fritters, she takes the whole packet in her hands, and Justin has to clarify that he only asked her to take one fritter. What's more, when a nervous Glikson asks Joel (Sangeeth Prathap) to help him woo Ashley by suggesting a topic that he can use to start a conversation with her, Joel sarcastically tells him to talk about "The Rise of Artificial Intelligence and the Fall of the IT Sector." Girish ensures you are always smiling and laughing and having a good time throughout. Later, when everybody learns about Justin and Ashley's romance, he also makes sure you see what kind of manipulative villains family members can become when they try to force their children to follow the paths they have already chosen for them. Ashley's mother, for instance, makes Ashley take an oath on the Bible that she will keep Justin away from her.

But there's young blood coursing through Girish's filmmaking. BKU is his rebellious vision of a society that places barriers on individual freedom. It's a vision that exalts romance and gives couples with age differences the push to pursue love despite strict codes and regulations. These rules, after all, are written by backward-minded people who believe they have the authority to decide what's morally right and what isn't. In BKU, romance flourishes despite resistance, making this movie a love story in which love becomes a source of liberation. This beguiling mix of love and liberation is present in Girish's filmmaking as well, which, with the help of cinematographer Ajmal Sabu and editor Akash Joseph Varghese, attains a seductive fluidity that puts you in a state of blissful trance. Girish loves movies, and he makes you fall in love with his vision of defiant love. BKU is undoubtedly one of the best films of the year and a definite highlight of Girish's career. It has an enveloping embrace; it leaves you enraptured.

Written by - Vikas Yadav
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Publisher at Midgard Times