“Ee boot canal inte bhagathottu poyitumundu… thirichu vannitumundu…. thirichu vanna print angottu poyathinu apekshichu valare aazhathilaanu pathinjirikkunnathu.. Poya aal thirichu vannapol bhaaramulla entho undaayirunu… Which means he was carrying something”
Suresh Krishna and others were stunned on screen. So was I when I watched this sequence in Memories first day in theaters. Because I had my apprehensions not being really impressed with all the posters that showed Prithviraj weak , stooped and drunk. I still think Prithviraj’s performance in Memories is slightly underrated . Because it’s his preceding movies Ayaalum Njaanum Thammil, Mumbai Police and Celluloid which won him more rave reviews (two of them state award too). But personally, it would rank among my 3 favorite performances of the actor.
There is not a single moment where Prithviraj is out of character in Memories. He perfectly balances the pain of a man who lost his family and the agility and urgency of an intelligent cop . The beauty of it is that all the while he remains drunk. If how his eyes wander an investigation scene looking for clues is a delight , the confusion on his face as he looks from one suspect to another in the final scenes thrilled us even more.
This Friday when Prithviraj returns as another drunkard in Pavada, it might be more challenging because playing cops with any variations have always been the actor’s strength. Can he pull off another great drunk act? – let us wait and see.
