Writers: Muhsin Parari, Sharfu, Suhas
DOP: Rajeev Ravi, Shyju Khalid
Cast: Revathy, Tovino Thomas, Parvathy, Indrajith, Soubin Shahir
Film recounts the details of the deadly 2018 Nipah Virus outbreak in Kerala which claimed lives of around two dozen people. The Nipah virus is very contagious with a very high death rate and it was happening in Kerala for the first time. There was every chance that it could turn into an epidemic considering Kerala's high population density but the medical community here along with the administrators were successful in containing it. The film basically recounts that story and is not focused on any particular protagonist. That is quite apt for the huge ensemble cast that was assembled for the film.
I am a huge fan of Steven Soderbergh's Contagion which also dealt with a virus outbreak like Nipah but on a global scale. I had seen some similarities to it in Ashiq Abu's previous film Maayanadhi (Kodaikanal scenes) in terms of shot visualisation and background music and was wondering whether he would use a similar approach here as well. That is not the case here because it wouldn't be realistic to take that approach when the central location for much of the film is Calicut Medical College. Contagion dealt with largely a what if scenario of such a global epidemic happening and how the society's functioning will get affected. We got a mini version of it in Kerala as Calicut city became a ghost town. Social exclusion of families affected happened and there was considerable fear in the two affected districts, Kozhikode and Malappuram.
Virus begins showing the everyday life of a medical college casualty in a riveting fashion and the busy nature sets the tone for the film. First half of the film depicts how it was diagnosed, it was an incredible feat that it was identified as Nipah from the second patient itself, and steps taken to monitor around 3000 people who came into contact with the initial patients. The bodies of those who died were not given back to the relatives and the challenges that the administration faced for cremation of it is also shown. Second half of the film deals with identifying how each of the patients were linked to establish how the virus got transmitted. Film takes a largely political tone in second half as you have the centre suggesting the possibility of a bio attack due to the religion of the index patient. I can see this aspect generating controversies in the coming days from the right wing dickheads for targeting them as well as from others for the logic of dedicating so much time for what then seemed like an internet phenomenon. It will be interesting to see if such a push did came from the centre and won't be too surprising. Anyway the makers have the licence to take creative liberties.
The original cut of the film was three hours long and they shaved 30 minutes off it for the theatrical release. You do see where it got the cuts as the Asif Ali storyline seemed quite half-baked. Overall the film works very well as a procedural without going into a semi documentary format. There are enough traits given for many of the characters from medical community to make it interesting and the administration characters are played largely in a matter of fact manner. A Nipah case was identified in Ernakulam last week but people seems to be dealing with it in a confident manner.
Rating: 4.25/5
