Based on writer G.R.Indugopan’s “Nalanchu Cheruppakkar,” Jothish Shankar’s “Ponman” is a synthesis and character study of toxic masculinity while tackling the central theme of dowry menace. “Ponman,” translated as ‘the man with the gold’ does not make an in-depth, but rather a muted commentary against the dowry System. Despite legal prohibition under the Dowry Prohibition Act (1961), dowry is still normalized in Kerala, thereby leading to dowry-led deaths and suicides. “Ponman” is centered around one such woman who falls victim to dowry and the man who lends her gold. But does the film give her enough voice and arc? Well, let’s get there later.
Ponman’s titular character Ajesh PP is a jewellery agent involved in Madiyil Jewellery’s shady gold-lending business in Kollam. He crosses paths with Steffi Graf, her widowed mother, and communist brother Bruno. Steffi and her family are financially struggling even without a piece of land to call theirs and they need to make Steffi’s alliance with Mariano happen by any means. Ajesh agrees to lend her gold without upfront payment under the condition of repaying after the ceremony in the form of collected cash gifts and financial aid from friends and family. He lends 25 pavan (1 pavan = 8 gms of gold) to Steffi under the condition of reclaiming the gold he lent if the borrower fails to pay.
Owing to Bruno’s anger issues and off-putting demeanor, the cash gifts and financial aid from dear and near fall short, and Ajesh has to now face Steffi’s husband – the gigantically built Mariano who’s the keeper of a prawn farm in Thalavettichira (a place where beheadings happen) to reclaim his 12 pavan gold. When Steffi’s helpless mother and Bruno convince an adamant Steffi to return the gold, she retorts back with clear helplessness. This leaves Ajesh in a fix but revelations about Mariano make things even more messier and complicated for him and Steffi.
Will Ajesh reclaim the gold back? How will he tackle a hugely built Mariano and his criminal traits? What will happen to Steffi once the truth is out in the open for Mariano? “Ponman” answers all of these questions while leaving a subtle message on toxic masculinity, the place of a woman in a man’s world, and the bigger menace that is the dowry system. But how well does “Ponman” address these issues? While G.R. Indugopan’s story and taut screenplay (alongside Justin Mathew) dissect the different types of toxic masculinities through Mariano, Ajesh, and Bruno, it also sort of invisibilises the real victim – Steffi.
“Ponman” reduces itself into a battle of male egos, existence, and survival between Ajesh and Mariano, both driven by their interests, thereby falling short of becoming a near-perfect film, thanks to its dampened priorities for Steffi. “Ponman” aptly sketches character arcs for Ajesh, and Mariano and even gives Bruno a redemption, but Steffi is cornered into a space where the audience sees less of what she thinks and believes in this story of denial, deception, and power struggle. Akin to how a woman’s worth means little in comparison to the gold she brings home in this degraded society, Steffi’s point of view means little in this story of “the man with the gold’’.
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While indulging in an illegal business that thrives on illegal dowry practice, the writing over-humanizes Ajesh and demonizes Mariano and his family. But, then the film does not pinpoint blacks and whites. It shows us humans as victims of circumstances and society. “Ponman,” however, is a perfect film technically. Throughout a taut run-time of 2 hours, the writing manages to narrate a story full of conflicts and sell the helplessness of its leads effectively.
Justin Varghese’s music and score hit all the right notes and enhanced the tension built between characters perfectly. Sanu John Varghese’s camera treats Kollam as a character in itself, like Idukki in “Maheshinte Prathikaram” (2016). The picturesque frames and lighting choices make “Ponman” one of the most visually enticing theatre experiences of this decade. Phoenix Prabu’s stunt choreography in a particularly stand-out climactic sequence deserves all the praise and Nidhin Raj Arol’s editing choices elevate the film in more ways than one.
Sajin Gopu’s performance as this Goliath of a man Mariano towers over the film and is well anchored by Basil Joseph’s grounded act as Ajesh. Sajin Gopu churns out a performance starkly different from Aavesham’s Amban and has an incredibly arresting screen presence that invokes fear. While one could generally discover shadows of offscreen Basil Joseph in all his characters (Sookshmadarshini and Pravin Koodu Shappu for eg:), Ajesh is his most earnest and realized performance where he becomes the character effortlessly. Rightfully hailed as his career-best performance, Ajesh’s frustration, anxiety, helplessness, regret, deceit, and suffering are relatably echoed in Basil’s performance.
The underdog performance in “Ponman” is Lijomol Jose’s Steffi Graf. Despite donning a character that gets no significant voice and is a puppet to her circumstances, she makes the most of what she gets. Lijomol lends immense emotional gravitas to a role that otherwise would have not made as much impact. Her confrontation scenes with Basil Joseph and Anand Manmadhan land particularly well. Anand Manmadhan’s Bruno barely makes his presence felt despite clogging enough screen time. His helplessness and sadness evoke genuine disinterest owing to his cold acting skills and dead-paned facial expressions.
“Ponman” is a high-stakes drama that keeps you anxious for most of its duration. It does a lot of things right and goes wrong at places where the demarcation between the intent and execution appears to blur. The film is fuelled by superlative acting performances from its leads and tells a tale that dissects toxic masculinity with subtle anti-dowry messaging. Overall, the film’s story may not, but its messaging would stand the test of time considering how rotten the society we live in is.
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