Language: Tamil.
Director: Madonne Ashwin.
Writers: Madonne Ashwin, Suman Kumar.
Cast : Yogi Babu, Sheela Rajkumar, Sangili Murugan.
Genre : Comedy | Drama.
Imdb: Mandela (2021)
Streaming on Netflix.
“There is no such thing as a vote that doesn’t matter, it all matters”
Loudspeakers are blaring, banners are flying and celebrated songs are re-written to propagate political agenda. Yes , another election season is here again. The perfect state of affairs for Madonne Ashwin to enter the scene with his political satire ‘ Mandela’. A light hearted take on the political structure in our nation especially among the rural population. A system plagued by bribery and caste. On the outside, the film is one filled with cries and laughs as Yogi Babu a man without an identity, suddenly finds himself to be the most important person in the village of Soorangudi, Tamil Nadu. However the intricate aspects of discrimation that the film aims to convey is scattered throughout the frames. The poisonous fangs of casteism and racism that strips a person of his existence and how the lust for power and money changes individuals are the underlying themes that are well explored and executed. Even with the depiction of such prejudice and bigotry, the movie successfully manages to provide a beautiful ending with a simple message that is pertinent to the times.
Verdict: 5/7 Stars.
Excellent.
Trivia:
Project was initially titled as “Oru Vote-u Vithyasathil” [with a difference of one vote].
