Njandukalude Naattil Oridavela - The day Nivin Pauly stopped even trying.

It seems after Sakhavu and Action Hero Biju, Nivin Pauly is tired of trying to act (or whatever that was) and just wants to chill out with his best mates, while making some easy bucks on the side. There was an evident effort to at least memorize the dialogues in his previous films. This movie, for me, is so far the worst movie of the season. (I haven't seen Dulquar's and Dulquar Senior's movies yet, so there is still plenty of room for competition). This is a flawed attempt at recreating another Premam and the filmmaker expects the audience to lap up anything which contains 'the right people'. The result is an irritating experience with performances that can be described as lazy at best.

What ticks me off the most is that, this could easily have been a heart warming movie about the victory of human spirit in the face of death. There was great scope for characterization and drama. It would have been a story of different characters reacting to the news of cancer, them dealing with the situation and coming to terms with it. Each character would have gone through a transformation, gaining maturity while adding depth to themselves and the narrative. Instead, the movie trivializes the subject with attempts at humor and romance. All the characters remain in the same state even after going through a traumatic episode in their lives.

• Sheela Chacko (Shanthi Krishna) discovers a lump in her breast which turns out to be cancerous. She is cured by the end of the movie. She is cool and nonchalant throughout the movie.

• Nivin Pauly plays the role of the eldest son, Kurien Chacko,  who is playing the role of George David from Premam. He is the usual dewy-eyed, texting-under-the-sheets, love-drunk man-boy. The fact that his mother is battling cancer has very little effect on his life.

• Ahana Krishna plays the role of Sarah Chacko, the younger daughter. We don't know very much about this character, except that she stares a lot.

• Srinda is Mary Tony, the elder daughter. She exists.

• Siju Wilson plays Tony, the son-in-law. He cares a lot about money.

• Aishwarya plays the placeholder love interest of Nivin Pauly. That's it. Nothing else. She is the generic pretty girl's picture that came with the new photo frame you bought online.

• The only character that shows some identity is Chacko, played by Lal. He is inexplicably irritated and fussy about everything. His concern for his wife's health is very evident even though their chemistry is confined to that aspect in the movie.

It is not difficult to see through this movie. It is a Nivin Pauly rom-com feeling guilty of not being 'socially relevant'. The filmmaker wants to flaunt the newly risen 'Brat-Pack' of Malayalam industry and wants to profit off it. The cancer story line is simply an anticipatory bail. With utter disregard for screenplay and wrong priorities, this movie symbolizes the cancer gripping Malayalam cinema, which no amount of chemo can cure.

Rating:  An annoying Cadbury Silk ad trying to masquerade as a public service message.