Dinjith Ayyathan’s ‘Kishkindha Kaandam’ is a superb mystery that’s also a superb existential drama

The film – starring Asif Ali, Vijayaraghavan, and Aparna Balamurali – works as both text and subtext. On the surface, we have the question of a missing gun. And beneath the surface, we get the sense that not all of life’s mysteries can be solved.

There are two types of screenplay writing. Let’s take the early scene in Kishkindha Kaandam, where we see a man and woman having a registered marriage. The first way to present this event would be to tell us who this man is, who this woman is, how they met (given that he lives in a forest area in Kerala and she is an IT professional from Bengaluru). This is the traditional way, the easy way – this helps the audience latch on to the story and the characters immediately. The second way is to do what director Dinjith Ayyathan and writer Bahul Ramesh do, and this is to drop us into this scenario, cold, like in real life, as though we are a stranger getting a glimpse of a registered marriage as we pass by the building. Take another scene from Kishkindha Kaandam. Let’s say you are having a video chat with your brother. You are going to say “Hey”, and continue with the conversation (which means someone passing by may not know who you are speaking with). Whereas, the more traditional screenwriting approach would be to say, “Hello, dear brother, how nice to hear from you, I miss you,” which establishes both the relationship and the closeness of this relationship.

You can read the rest of the review here:

https://www.galattaplus.com/dinjith-ayyathans-kishkindha-kaandam-is-a-superb-mystery-thats-also-a-superb-existential-drama/

You can watch the trailer / video review here:

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