This is the story of a writer who confronts not just his characters, but also his own biases and prejudices. The inventively made film doesn’t preach, but it leaves you thinking. The rest of this review may contain spoilers.
On the surface, Mayakoothu is the story of a writer of serialised novels. His name is Vasan, and he is played by Nagarajan Kannan. Delhi Ganesh plays his publisher and editor. He says that writing is a dying art, as no one reads anymore. He is running this publishing company on behalf of the owner, who is keeping the company going only because his father is the founder. After the father dies, the son will shut down the publishing house, and in effect shut down the career of writers like Vasan. Even Vasan’s wife is not a reader. She watches television serials, and she wishes he’d write those instead. Vasan keeps pouring out his frustrations to a sculptor – that is, another creator. The man becomes both an advisor and a sort of conscience. One of the things this sculptor says is that everything we create has an impact. In other words, the stories that Vasan writes – they are more than just strings of words meant to entertain his readers.
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AR Raghavendra’s ‘Mayakoothu’ is a clever mix of storytelling, philosophy, and politics
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