''Aanandam'' (English: ''Joy'') is a
2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...
Indian
Malayalam
Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 22 scheduled languages of India. Malayalam was des ...
-language
coming of age film In genre studies, a coming-of-age story is a genre of literature, theatre, film, and video game that focuses on the growth of a protagonist from childhood to adulthood, or " coming of age". Coming-of-age stories tend to emphasize dialogue or inter ...
written and directed Ganesh raj in his directorial debut. Cinematography was by Anend C. Chandran.
Vineeth Sreenivasan
Vineeth Sreenivasan (born 1 October 1984) is an Indian playback singer, actor, film director, screenwriter, producer, lyricist, creative director and dubbing artist. He predominantly works in the Malayalam cinema. He is the son of actor an ...
produced the film under the banner Habit of Life in association with Vinod Shornur under Cast N' Crew. ''Aanandam'' follows the life of seven sophomore engineering students as they embark on their first college tour.
The film features
Arun Kurian
Arun Kurian is an Indian actor who appears on Malayalam cinema. He made his feature film debut through a lead role in the coming of age film ''Aanandam'' (2016).
He played supporting roles in ''Velipadinte Pusthakam'' (2017), ''Oru Yamandan Pr ...
, Thomas Mathew, Siddhi Mahajankatti,
Roshan Mathew
Roshan Mathew (born 22 March 1992) is an Indian actor who works predominantly in Malayalam films and Hindi, Tamil & Telugu films. He began his career with numerous theatre productions based in Chennai and Mumbai. These include ''The Glass Mena ...
, Annu Antony,
Vishak Nair
Vishak Nair ''(also spelled as Vyshak Nair)'' is an Indian actor appearing in Malayalam cinema. He gained recognition on his debut performance in 2016 film ''Aanandam'' directed by Ganesh Raj which made him a household name. He also appear as the ...
and
Anarkali Marikar
Anarkali Marakkar (born 8 February 1997) is an Indian actress who appears predominantly in Malayalam films. She made her debut in 2016 in the film ''Aanandam''.
Early life
Anarkali was born to Nias Marikar and Lali P. M. Her father is a photog ...
in the lead roles. Shooting locations were at
Goa
Goa () is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is located between the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north and Karnataka to the ...
,
Hampi
Hampi or Hampe, also referred to as the Group of Monuments at Hampi, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in Hampi (town), Hampi town, Vijayanagara district, east-central Karnataka, India.
Hampi was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire i ...
,
Kochi
Kochi (), also known as Cochin ( ) ( the official name until 1996) is a major port city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of K ...
,
Mysore
Mysore (), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern part of the state of Karnataka, India. Mysore city is geographically located between 12° 18′ 26″ north latitude and 76° 38′ 59″ east longitude. It is located at an altitude of ...
, and at Amal Jyothi College of Engineering. It was released in theatres on 21 October 2016 and was blockbuster in box office. This movie was subsequently dubbed into Telugu under the ''same title'' in 2018 by Sukhibava movies.
Plot
The story revolves around a group of seven friends who embark on their first IV tour (Industrial Visit) of their college life and how it affects small to large changes in their mellow lives. "Rockstar" Gautham, Kuppi, Devika (aka Devooty), Diya, Darshana, Varun and Akshay, along with a group of 33 classmates and two faculty members (Chacko Sir and Lovely Miss) travel to Hampi ''via
Mysuru
Mysore (), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern part of the state of Karnataka, India. Mysore city is geographically located between 12° 18′ 26″ north latitude and 76° 38′ 59″ east longitude. It is located at an altitude of ...
'' and then to Goa for the New Year's Eve. Varun organizes the trip as he's recommended by the whole class.
Gautham and Devika are the lovebirds of the group, with Gautham's talent in western music being the spark kindling the relationship. While Gautham is no longer interested in western music and wish to pursue Hindustani classical music; he is forced to mask that part of his identity from Devika for the fear of how her reaction will be. ''Diya'' with her lovely nature had been the fascination of Akshay's dreams for a long time, which is known to everyone, except her. The lively nature of Diya had attracted many others in the past (''including Varun, known only to Kuppi''), who obviously confess their feelings only to get turned down as she never adds a different colour to her friendships. Akshay, being apprehensive, never wishes to do the same and hopes that she likes him on her own terms. He never even talks to her and his friends recommend that he can never pray for a better chance than their first year IV. Akshay is also hunted by many fears including fear of water, fear of heights, among others; but the worst one being his fear of future, as he is often being compared with his successful elder brother, ''Akash'', who set the standards too high. Varun had earlier confessed his feelings to Diya, who rejected the proposal hoping to remain friends. With a feeling of insult, he couldn't do that anymore, leading him to his familiar trait of anger and distant nature. He even remains hostile to another classmate who has a crush on him. The girl, on various occasions, tries to approach him, but each time he dispassionately avoids her. In spite of his cold attitude, he is respected among his friends and classmates alike for his discipline and efficiency. He is often too detached from the group carrying on with his responsibilities, that it comes to the notice of even their bus driver, ''Josettan''. Diya, whose parents just got divorced joins the trip as an escape from her distress. She doesn't reveal about the divorce to her dear friends – Devika and Darshana or any others for the fear of their sympathy, which can make the situation even more difficult on her. She easily manages to hide her secrets in her cheerful semblance. Kuppi's only intention coming for the IV was to have a good time with his three best friends, which is often denied due to the occurrences around him. Darshana, a reserved person by nature, thinks the world of her friends, being a silent partner in all their activities and a curious observer to all the happenings around them. Her only outlet of emotions is her sketchbook that she holds dear and private.
During the trip, Diya succeeds in talking to Varun. She resolves their differences to slowly gain back her old friend. Akshay's friends manage to seat Diya near him during the overnight journey to Goa, whereby Akshay finally gets a chance to privately talk to her. They converse through the night, where Diya grows fond of someone for the first time. With a little nudge from her friends, Diya starts to reciprocate Akshay's feelings. Coming to know of Akshay's irrational fears, Diya gets him to face his fears, starting with the adventure sport of
bungee jumping
Bungee jumping (), also spelled bungy jumping, is an activity that involves a person jumping from a great height while connected to a large elastic cord. The launching pad is usually erected on a tall structure such as a building or crane, a ...
. With his first fear conquered, he does the same with his next by finally confessing his feelings to Diya, which she welcomes.
Diya opens up about her parents' divorce to Akshay, which he accidentally reveals to Gautham and through him to Devika, who openly consoles Diya revealing the secret to the whole group. At the same time, Kuppi in a state of intoxication reveals every other secrets about the group – Diya's relation with Akshay, Varun's proposal and Gautham's fear, to everyone else. Offended, Diya retreats to her room. Coming back to his senses, Kuppi realizes how bad his act was. On the next day (also the last day of the trip), Kuppi apologizes to his best friends revealing how tough it was for him to be denied their presence and they reconcile. Gautham reveals his interests to Devika, who gradually accepts and share in his likes. Meanwhile, Varun learns that their expensive tickets to the New Year's party are fake. To his surprise, no one blames him and the group now has a huge task to search for another party.
Diya still stays away from the group, mainly because she can't come to grips with her mother leaving her father. She doesn't talk to anyone including Akshay, much to the dismay of the group. During the search for a party, Akshay runs into his "ideal" brother, Akash, partying in Goa. Although astonished at the find, they share a talk, whereby Akshay no longer fears for his future. With his brother's help he finds an
Origami
) is the Japanese paper art, art of paper folding. In modern usage, the word "origami" is often used as an inclusive term for all folding practices, regardless of their culture of origin. The goal is to transform a flat square sheet of pape ...
themed party for the night (as Diya likes them). On Akshay's initiative, his professor instigates a talk between Diya's father and Diya, over the phone. Her father reveals the facts behind the divorce and she gets told that the divorce is not that difficult on him, as she imagines it to be. With a feeling of relief despite being sad, she finally rejoins the group for the party. During the party, Darshana shows Diya her sketchbook, which reveals how Akshay and Diya filled her thoughts of late and how happy she was, when she was with him. Diya confesses her feelings to Akshay, rekindling their relationship. Also, Varun apologizes to Diya for his prolonged unfriendly behaviour. He then joins the group for the first time, to celebrate the New Year after Josettan tells him "you can never find time for happiness if you wait for your responsibilities to end, as time slips through your fingers before you even know it."
Back in college, the 'changed' Akshay and Diya are now a couple. Varun is more friendly and content. Kuppi pursues a photography initiative with his new girlfriend ''Cathy'', whom he met whilst on the trip. Devika developed a liking for Indian music, like Gautham and he, on the other hand, overcame his fear of needles to get a couples tattoo with Devika. Darshana is more open about her drawings to her intimate friends.
Cast
Music
Songs were composed by
Sachin Warrier
Sachin Warrier is an Indian playback singer and composer in the Malayalam film industry from Kerala. He became notable with the song "''Muthuchippi Poloru''" from the film ''Thattathin Marayathu''. He made his debut with the movie ''Malarvaadi A ...
, which was his debut film as a music director. Lyrics were penned by
Vineeth Sreenivasan
Vineeth Sreenivasan (born 1 October 1984) is an Indian playback singer, actor, film director, screenwriter, producer, lyricist, creative director and dubbing artist. He predominantly works in the Malayalam cinema. He is the son of actor an ...
,
Manu Manjith
Manu Manjith is an Indian lyricist and poet in Malayalam language. He is also a Homoeopath. He began his film career with the Malayalam film ''Ohm Shanthi Oshaana'' in 2014. He is a frequent collaborator of Shaan Rahman since 2014.
Filmography
...
,
Sachin Warrier
Sachin Warrier is an Indian playback singer and composer in the Malayalam film industry from Kerala. He became notable with the song "''Muthuchippi Poloru''" from the film ''Thattathin Marayathu''. He made his debut with the movie ''Malarvaadi A ...
and
Anu Elizabeth Jose
Anu Elizabeth Jose is an Indian lyricist. She made her debut in the 2012 Malayalam film ''Thattathin Marayathu'' through the song "Muthuchippi Poloru".
Early life
In 2015 she wrote lyrics for the film ''32aam Adhyayam 23aam Vaakyam'', music co ...
.
Box office
The film was a commercial success, grossing 20 crore against a budget of 4 crore. Telugu dubbed version also performed well
References
External links
*
{{Vineeth Sreenivasan
2016 films
Films shot in Kochi
Films shot in Mysore
Films shot in Karnataka
Films shot in Goa
2010s Malayalam-language films