Sanju Madhu – Movies of the Soul

Vampire Owl: I have heard about a man named Ace Ventura being a pet detective.

Vampire Bat: He is quite a different person even from a distance.

Vampire Owl: Why do the pets even need detectives?

Vampire Bat: Don’t you know that animal lives are more important than human lives these days?

Vampire Owl: I have heard so much related to the strange love towards dogs.

Vampire Bat: Yes, so much that they abandon the dogs in the street and let them bite humans.

Vampire Owl: It is indeed some strange love.

Vampire Bat: Humans even hate each other so much. Strange people.

Vampire Owl: Have you ever met a good human in life?

Vampire Bat: Well, I do not know that many humans.

[Gets a Paneer Patty and three cups of Nuwara Eliya tea].

What is the movie about? :: Tony Jose Alula (Sharaf U Dheen) is a jobless young man who inherits his Mexico-returnee father Jose Alula’s (Renji Panicker) failing private detective agency, and in the process, also hopes to impress his childhood sweetheart Kaikeyi Menon (Anupama Parameswaran) and her disapproving strict father CKP Menon (Major Ravi) who has returned from military service. Rajath Menon (Vinay Forrt), the local police officer is also after Kaikeyi to earn her love, but she does not show that much of interest in him. Meanwhile, Tony and Kayikeyi keeps their relationship with a lot of fighting in between, but they get back to each other every time. But time keeps running out for Tony who really need to get a good job to get a chance to be married to his lady love. Tony and his loyal assistant at the detective agency, Sanoop (Joemon Jyothir) get the first big case in the form of a missing dog, which they are able to solve with relative ease due to some strange turn of events. As they get one lakh rupees from the owner who value the dog a lot, they begin to call themselves Pet Detectives, trying to solve more of similar cases.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: But there are lots of things happening in the background and everything is happening due to some grand evil schemes which have its roots in Mexico and other states of India. There is a criminal racket involved in the smuggling of some exotic aquatic species, with fish worth lakhs of rupees gone missing, and then there are little kids being kidnapped. A mafia leader from Hyderabad named Yaqat Ali (Vinayakan) has also arrived in Cochin, and has brought his own team of goons who are ready to do anything at his request. Tony is forced to take the help of his old school friend Thinkal Thomas (Shyam Mohan), but both are kidnapped along with Kaikeyi. Now, it is still to be seen about what step is to be taken for them to escape from these people who are looking out for them as they have also become entangled in this series of problems. Will the gangsters get what they want, and will the biggest crime lord of all-time come to Cochin from Mexico?

The defence of The Pet Detective :: The movie does focus on the comic side more than anything else. There is the effort to make it feel big, almost in that CID Moosa mood, with complications getting solved due to situations with a touch of humour, and the main characters are able to carry the same well on their shoulders as there is the full-fledged support of veterans. The performances here are energetic and the light feeling never really leaves the movie – the darkness never engulfs the film despite having a Mexican drug lord and gangster in the background ready to make an attack. The silly chaos mode has been activated very well too. The movie’s beginning is of top quality, and has us interested in the proceedings early. There is a certain amount of quality related to the visuals around here too. The movie’s good box-office collection reflects the response of the family audience here, as one feel that there is something for all kinds of audience, with this one being a clean entertainer. The arrival at OTT has also made sure that it will have more fans around.

The claws of flaw :: The inability to get on to the provided opportunities can be seen here. It tries to go big too, but never really reaches that level. The movie did begin with that promise which is only partially fulfilled by the end. There is a certain loss of interest which seems to have come in the middle due to the fact that there does not seem to be enough of an effort from some characters that seem to just wander along. Some characters are just everywhere, and the focus is never really one the right place during times. There are moments which could have been so much funnier, but the movie holds back at times, and keeps on adding complications, but the funny side does not get added there. The ending also feels a little bit too rushed and the final running around in confusion feels amateurish. The ending seems to have been forced to add a happy finish, and one would wonder if it could have just finished normally.

The performers of the soul :: Sharaf U Dheen has already displayed the strength to carry this type of movies on his shoulders, from that antagonist in Anjaam Pathiraa to the horror comedy combination in Hello Mummy. This time, when dealing with action comedy, he shows the skill to carry the whole thing mostly in his own style which works. Anupama Parameswaran makes her way here nicely, even though one would have felt that she deserved more, from how she began here. Vijayaraghavan carries the side of humour so well, and leads to the twists nicely. Shyam Mohan’s avatar keeps us interested as he did in Premalu. Vinayakan handles the negative role with a touch of humour without any difficulty. Vinay Forrt does well, but required more to his particular character here. Joemon Jyothir’s comic side works nicely and adds to the overall humour. Nishant Sagar also adds nicely to the fun while Bhagath Manuel and Jinu Joseph could have had bigger roles to play in here over these contributions.

How it finishes :: The Pet Detective seems to be aimed at heights, but that much is never reached despite opportunities being presented. Just a few months earlier Sahasam had achieved what the chaos comedy thrillers had dreamed of, and the chaos comedy was always best done through movies like Adi Kapyare Koottamani and Kunjiramayanam. If one is still in the mood for some light comedy without using that much of brains, this one provides an energetic and engaging journey, with never going down with its pace. But looking for believable plots, strong story-telling and memorable moments would not be the right choice to here as you need to enjoy the fun and move away, with no questions asked. After all, these kinds of movies are also the need of the times, for not everyone needs the most powerful investigation thrillers with twists that bends the mind to find a terrifying serial killer – for them, there are always movies like John Luther, Anjaam Pathiraa, Forensic, Paappan, Abraham Ozler, Anveshippin Kandethum and others.

Release date: 16th October 2025
Running time: 116 minutes
Directed by: Praneesh Vijayan
Starring: Sharaf U Dheen, Anupama Parameswaran, Vinayakan, Vinay Forrt, Shyam Mohan, Joemon Jyothir, Bhagath Manuel, Renji Panicker, Shobi Thilakan, Nishanth Sagar, P P Kunhikrishnan, Praseetha Menon, Sanju Madhu, Jai Vishnu, Jinu Joseph, Major Ravi, Amey Wagh, Maala Parvathi, Nileen Sandra, Prasanth Madhavan, Sonam Singh

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@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Vampire Owl: It is too early to go back to the feel-good factor.

Vampire Bat: Well, there was also feel-good in slasher mode.

Vampire Owl: Yes, considering the number of dead humans, it feels good.

Vampire Bat: We do know that the dead in these situations deserve their killers.

Vampire Owl: We would have had to ask someone like Thanos otherwise.

Vampire Bat: Human existence has threatened everyone too much.

Vampire Owl: Do we need to call for alien support?

Vampire Bat: Let us wait and see if there will be self-destruction.

Vampire Owl: We cannot depend on humans for anything.

Vampire Bat: Yes, I know the trust issues with them.

[Gets a paneer masala dosa and three cups of Assam tea].

What is the movie about? :: Manu Mohan (Sharaf U Dheen) lives a happy but boring life after getting a government job post the demise of his father. His interest in the job is minimal, and is not able to do work well enough. He has his life based on the usual journey in bus to the office, and is in love with Salabha Kurup (Aarsha Chandini Baiju). His family includes his mother Ushamma Mohan (Bindu Panicker) and his younger sisters Meera Mohan (Rajisha Vijayan) and Malavika Mohan (Meenakshi Warrier). While Meera is studying Final Year B.Com at the nearby college along with taking commerce tuitions at home, Malavika has only recently joined the college. Salabha also studies at the same college for another course, but they are not really fond of each other. His best friends are his senior at the government office Jose (Biju Sopanam) and a neighbour Ambadi Nair (Althaf Salim), who supports him in all his endeavours. Manu remains a much-loved young man in the village, and Meera has even a better opinion spread about her in the local area.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: As the love affair between Manu and Salabha is discovered by Indrasena Kurup (Vijayaraghavan), there is no real problem, as they belong to the same caste, community and religion, with not much gap in their economic and social status. But they soon figure out that Meera’s case is rather different. She is also in love, but it is complicated, and finding a solution to her problem would require them to think more divergently than ever. At the same time, there is the alliance of an eligible bachelor Jeevan Raj (Saiju Kurup) which they also don’t want to reject at any cost. Then comes another surprising alliance proposal, and more about Meera’s complicated life is revealed. Even with the best of support, this seems to be a complicated problem of love and matrimonial alliances, with all of them being very proud of their caste and community identities, always attempting to keep a respectful position in the area. Can some involve in all of these and solve the problem before time runs out?

The defence of Madhura Manohara Moham :: The movie maintains a funny and interesting vibrance throughout its run. There is no dull moment and the film uses the simplest of incidents in the movie to evoke laughter as well as thoughts. Life in a simple village in Pathanamthitta has been nicely portrayed, with all its sweetness as well as weirdness in comparison to the modern world. It has its messages to be added, and leaves us with the realization that there will always be borders, and even individually, people have their walls to keep others out effectively. We will always have people who look suspiciously at others when matrimonial alliances are concerned, there will always be those self-proclaimed high families who will do anything to keep their level of pride higher. All of these are shown in a creatively humorous manner that keeps the whole thing thoroughly enjoyable. The visuals of the greenery also serve the purpose. The movie also comes to the end really well, and the feel-good factor is successfully maintained without troubles.

The claws of flaw :: The movie does not go through all the possibilities of the main female character whose actions define the further proceedings of the film. Her moments in the college and surroundings could have also provided some good situations in the movie. The situations which brought us to that ending of the movie is never given that much of a significance, as we are presented with the make-believe situation rather too quickly. The repetition is present as one would expect, and it never rises above the limitations which it gains in between due to the requirement to come up with a feel-good ending rather than the more possible one. The plot could have been arranged better in reaching the same. There is the feeling of having some forced moments in between too. The music is not that interesting, as the songs do not catch our attention much – it should have done that because this works on making people feel good, or maybe better. The movie depends on some dialogues to keep it going rather than working on some overall stuff.

The performers of the soul :: Sharaf U Dheen plays the character of the simple man from village with ease, and he makes a likable character at all times. He displays the helplessness and hope of everyman with things to be done in life, as realistic as possible. Among the performers, it is Rajisha Vijayan who stands out, as she shifts gears for her character at regular intervals. The Kerala State Award Winner for Best Actress with Anuraga Karikkin Vellam had some great time here too, and as someone who is capable of carrying the film all by herself like she did in Keedam, June, Finals and Kho-Kho, the actress maintains a lot of subtle energy here. Bindu Panicker’s mother figure is also someone whom we will remember for a very long time, as does Vijayaraghavan in the role of protagonist’s future father-in-law. Aarsha Chandini Baiju has a really cute performance in store here too. Biju Sopanam and Althaf Salim with the support feels very much suitable for the situation. Saiju Kurup’s extra addition of humour is also something to be appreciated. Sunil Sukhada has another interesting role to which he is no stranger.

How it finishes :: Madhura Manohara Moham is the kind of movie which has its interesting twists, and having a family feel-good movie doing these well can be considered as a nice journey. It serves as a reminder that people are not what we expect, and there is more to them than what meets the eye – for the same, there are only a few exceptions. It also reminds us that the divisions remain part of a social construct which remains the same, and despite the deviations, a complete change is not possible. It also reminds the viewers that all the romance that has been shown in the movies in the past is expendable, and there can be suitable replacements to all of them. In the new world, there is no scope for romantic love in the old style – we have gone a long way from there, and it is time for us to realize that the true realistic genres resemble horror. A movie like Forensic, Anjaam Paathira, Paappan, Twenty One Grams, Heaven or John Luther would be better truths than those dumb romantic movies which keep coming in Bollywood again and again.

Release date: 22nd August 2023 (Highrich); 16th June 2023 (Theatre)
Running time: 117 minutes
Directed by: Stephy Zaviour
Starring: Sharaf U Dheen, Rajisha Vijayan, Bindu Panicker, Aarsha Chandini Baiju, Vijayaraghavan, Biju Sopanam, Saiju Kurup, Niranj Maniyanpilla Raju, Sunil Sukhada, Neena Kurup, Althaf Salim, Meenakshi Warrier as Malu Mohan Aravind SK, Sanju Madhu, Jai Vishnu, Sooraj Nair, Shine Tom Chacko