Why? Firstly, the casting of the heroine Neethi Taylor is bang on. She is cute, like a doll and also delivers the demands of the character. Love stories, we mean not the senior or matured ones always draw a crowd to the theatre, here there is a fulfillment in the form of a few dialogues which the young men associate themselves with.
Tanish, though he gives a jolt in the initial 15 minutes with his stubble, bespectacled and obese look later takes your focus towards some neat work, the last couple of minutes when he as Lucky, falls down helplessly and heart broken as his friend tells him there's no point visiting Dil (Neethi), is really competent. The restraint that Neethi shows adds to the character development and there is a third character in the prelude and in the last moments that completes the circle.
There is some Ye Maaya Chesave and some moments of Bombay and a regular joi de vivre love story and the movie is done. Lucky's girlfriend is breaking up with him as she sees Neethi's photo in his wallet and he clears the cobwebs, narrates his past. He falls in love with Dil, though not at first sight but she has priorities clear. The conservative Muslim girl announces her engagement and her decision to quit college in three days on the eve of the college function where she and Lucky are supposed to be part of a programme.
Three days is enough for the hero to slowly sow the seeds of love and even prompt her to elope with him. Mem Vayasuku Vacham, the title sums up the the story hereafter. It is about the young couple coming of age, taking a matured decision. The eloped couple go to a registrar office and the girl backtracks thinking about her family. Her fickle-minded attitude puts him in a quandary and she convinces him that she will talk about him to her father and as usual in the last minute gives him a royal ditch.
This is what works here for the crowd. The lines that Lucky speaks is about the heartless, selfish and fickle nature of girls and how they move in life without any regret. The director also shows how the heroine lacks the courage when it comes to hurting the family, how she is engulfed by a whirlpool of emotions when she realises she is in love but continues to be in a state of denial.
Another aspect that strengthens the mood of the film is the genuine, authentic backdrop of the old city and the characters. The costumes that Rama Prabha wears makes her look like a real Muslim. The Vellipove number comes after the final break and that is quite unnecessary and seems to just lengthen and drag the story, otherwise good music, cinematography makes the film an okay watch.
Mem Vayasuku Vacham is a decent film for Tanish after Ride despite it not being a fresh story. Everything fell in place and moves along without too many loopholes. The film has many cliches but it is not pretentious. Singdha fits into her character well and is adorable.
There is one amusing scene, a college student wears a damp shirt with floral prints; When asked why he sprinkled water on it he says, "To keep the flowers from withering away."
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