Aravindante Athidhikal Review: A film that spreads happiness

Our hero is an epitome of goodness. An orphan who loves everyone, works hard, compassionate and he manages to win the heart of our heroine with all those traits. These are story elements we have seen in slightly old or typical movies. But director M Mohanan manages to treat it along with good humor and sensible sentiments to achieve a result that looks positive at the end of Aravindante Athidhikal.

Aravindan is a guy in his mid-twenties and he works hard in a hotel near Uduppi Mookambika temple. He is an orphan who is waiting for his mother to come back and take him. A girl who came there to start off her dancing career, becomes friends with Aravindan and the story shows us her attempt to find her friend's long lost mother.

The lack of craft that was becoming severe in M Mohanan movies was one reason I lost interest in his movies. His movies asked for excuses by being preachy. But Aravindante Athidhikal in a way is a comeback or an adapted updated version of the director. The typical feel you get is similar to that of Manikkyakkallu and the entertainment is a little more subtle when compared to Manikkyakkallu. The sentiments and humor works in favor of the film, making it a feel good experience.

The limited actor in Vineeth Sreenivasan got exploited nicely here. He is an endearing character here and even in the sentimental scenes, there is a minimalism which makes his acting more suitable for the character. The talented Nikhila Vimal aka Kabani Bonakkad was a pretty face that showed her talent on screen. Sreenivasan doesn't have much importense here. Aju Varghese and Bijukuttan were genuinely funny. Urvashi was hilarious. KPAC Lalitha, Sreejaya, Shanthi Krishna, Vijayaraghavan and Prem Kumar are the other main actors in the movie.

Unevolved melodrama was something that caused issues in M Mohanan films and here he rectifies that with minimalism in his scale. The script has a familiarity to it's demerit. But Mohanan adds a breath fresh air in the treatment by making it emotionally vibrant. The frames were good. The music was fitting and the edits also were impressive.

There is a degree of happiness Aravindante Athidhikal spreads within the constraints of being predictable and typical. That positive vibe makes it an eligible contender to be called as a feel good entertainer.