A sunday movie Outing

Sunday has, for long, been a day for reading columns of HT, matri-ad for Swap in MM & TOI, fishing at Seemapuri, eating, dozing and normally ends with Sunday marketing (buying vegetables for the week). This being the routine for all Sundays, we took a different course on 22nd May 2011. After trying seeing-off Latha and Premkumar at Nizam-Uddin (trying means only Baby could see them off as I was the watchman for the two cars- lack of parking space at both sides of Nizam Uddin – a sad story). We, Baby and me, took a break at TERI Library, had coffee and headed for a stroll at INA. Bought some more nappies for Gundappu, had meals at ‘Kerala Hotel’ , a Dhaba at INA. After that unpleasant meal we came back to IHC to watch Pranchiyettan and the Saint.

Pranchiyettan and the Saint- a beginning to end absolute entertainer with strong mind stirring message. The story in a nutshell is : Pranchi-(y)-ettan, a typical Trichur Nazrani, a rice trader by profession, with bags of money in his kitty, but gets little respect in society. (The Trichur Nazranis conveniently abbreviate names like Pranchi, Prunchu, Porinchu, Pinchoo etc from Francis – Varuthu, Vareethu, Varu etc from Varghese – Chacku, Chakkunni, Chakkappi out of Jacob). A straight forward, rich but uneducated Pranchi earned an adjective to his name Ari- Pranchi( u can interpret it in English as Rice Francis)from his school days.

Francis Cheramal’ (his baptized family name) who is Ari- Pranchi for the town, struggle to attain some name worth his financial status (nilayum vilayum). He tried various means to get his name included in the list of ‘Padmashree awardees’. His liaison manager, hilariously enliven by veteran Shree Innocent, even offered to get him a ‘Chevalier’ a French knighthood. Pranchiyettan, as a true Trichur catholic businessman , sees his baits soon. He realizes, the only respect he gets from the market is the yettan added to Pranchi, which he is aware, even Trichurites will call Jesus- if given a chance – Yesu-(v)-ettan.

Pranchiyettan, a staunch believer in Church and its saints, calls on his favourite Punyalan (Punyalan is Saint in Malayalam) and his namesake St. Francis of Assissi. St. Francis started his sermon in French, which stunned Pranchi for he believed that the prayers he made all this while in Malayalam went absolutely waste as the Saint could not understand a bit. But the Saint, took note of Pranchiyettan’s agony and thenceforth conversed in staunch Trichur slang.

The Punyalan opened Ari Pranchi’s eyes, though late, to the hollowness of Nilayum Vilayum and the futile efforts people make to please the Punyalans with bribes (offerings)to reach their goals and their finding solace in a bottle of water(holy water) or a blessed rosary. I suggest a Catholic should watch Pranchiyettan and the Saint- filmy melodrama aparts- for a change.