Aashakal Aayiram, directed by G. Prajith, feels like a warm, nostalgic hug for fans of 90s Malayalam cinema. Bringing together the real-life father-son pair of Jayaram and Kalidas Jayaram, the film serves as a spiritual successor to family classics like Veendum Chila Veettukaryangal. The story follows Hariharan (Jayaram), a weary medical representative who has traded his dreams for a paycheck, and his son Ajeesh (Kalidas), a social media “Young Prince” obsessed with becoming a movie superstar. While the film struggles to break new ground, its heart lies in the relatable, often humorous friction between a father’s realism and a son’s ambition.
Acting
The film’s strongest asset is Jayaram. After a long hiatus from leading roles in Malayalam, he returns with a performance that reminds us why he was the king of family dramas. He perfectly balances “grey” traits—insecurity and pomposity—with a weary dignity that makes his character deeply human. Kalidas Jayaram shares an easy chemistry with his father, he occasionally struggles to match Jayaram’s gravitas. His character’s passion for acting is often played for laughs, making his more serious emotional turns feel slightly unearned. Sharaf U Dheen nearly steals the show as Sumith Raghavan, an arrogant, power-hungry “nepo-baby” superstar. Sharaf balances charm and villainy beautifully, even when the writing for his character becomes a bit one-dimensional. Asha Sharath plays the moral anchor of the family. Though she is sometimes relegated to the sidelines, her character avoids the “punching bag” tropes of older films, carrying herself with a quiet, thoughtful strength.Anand Manmadhan was good and engaged all lighter parts through out, but Akhil NRD was disappointing.
Direction
G. Prajith (of Oru Vadakkan Selfie fame) creates a film that is “delightfully old-school.” He relies heavily on meta-humor and self-referential jokes. At its best, the direction makes the movie feel like a “Greatest Hits” collection of Jayaram’s career. However, the film falters in the second half when the narrative shifts from breezy comedy to heavy melodrama. Prajith’s reliance on nostalgia acts as a double-edged sword: it provides warmth in the beginning but feels like a crutch by the predictable climax.
Screenplay
The screenplay, co-written by Aravind Rajendran and Jude Anthany Joseph, is structured like a classic 90s drama with a modern facelift. The film excels when it focuses on the intimate, “shambolic” details of middle-class life—like a father settling for an ordinary cake because he can’t afford red velvet. However, the technical execution becomes “jarring” toward the end, with over-the-top lines about nepotism and contrived plot twists that feel out of sync with the earlier, grounded scenes.
Music
The music is a major vehicle for the film’s nostalgia. The score is peppered with callbacks, including the use of Ilaiyaraaja’s background themes from Kochu Kochu Santhoshangal. These musical cues are designed to trigger a “direct dial-up connection” to the audience’s memories. While some song placements feel organic—like a crackling drinking scene between father and son—other choices, like the climax’s musical callbacks, feel like a desperate attempt to force an emotional reaction that the script hadn’t quite earned.
Overall
Aashakal Aayiram is a harmless, breezy watch that succeeds more as a tribute to Jayaram’s legacy than as an original sports-style biopic of an actor. It’s a movie that invites you to swim in the warmth of the past, even if the shore it lands on is a bit predictable.