Sudani From Nigeria – An ode to humanity!!!

Bharath Vijayakumar

I think we need to stop telling that 'Malayalam cinema never ceases to surprise'. It is a sort of disrespect to an industry that keeps delivering gems at such a frequency that these films are now almost a norm and not exceptions. Sudani from Nigeria is another slice of life drama that lets you soak in the lives of a few individuals, has them discover few things about their own lives and as a bonus could lead you to some soul searching.

Plot

Samuel (aka) Sudani from Africa gets to play for one of the local football clubs in Kerala that is coached by Majeed (a splendid Soubin Shahir). Circumstances force Majeed to have Samuel at his home for a few days.

The best aspect of a film like Sudani from Nigeria is that it hardly preaches but there is so much out there for you to pick up if you want to. The film transports you so close to the lives of these simple persons that you feel like a part of their household. The fact that you only see characters and not actors performing on screen is what ensures this connect. And what fabulous actors (if we may call them that) these are. I am not even talking about the protagonist Majeed. His mother, his father, the neighbourhood lady and every other actor who appears on screen would have you believe that these are who they are in real life. A lot of credit to the technicians as well in capturing the rooted-ness of the milieu. There is a lot of difference between trying to showcase something beautifully and capturing the beauty in its essence.

Every character in the film is fighting a battle. Majeed is someone whom you would sympathise for. He is a good hearted person willing to help someone in need. But he isn't able to realise the pain he is causing to his own mother or even if he realises it (the guilt is all over his face at times) he is not able to get over something from his childhood that has him behave this way. He recieves abundant love at his home and he channels this to people he meets outside but is never able to reciprocate the same at home. The film is a reflection on how even entirely good human beings have these mind blocks that blind them to the sufferings they cause on their loved ones. And it takes someone so alien to them to remove these blindfolds. The relationship dynamics between Majeed, his mother and father and the arc it traverses and how we view it after a revelation is sheer brilliance from director Zakariya Mohammed.

Sudani from Nigeria is a celebration of life. Despite the problems the characters face, you hardly see them whining about it. You see Majeed in a football field and you realise how this sport is all that he needs in life. He doesn't have a regular job and is struggling to make ends meet but all this becomes distant memory every time he is in the midst of soccer. He even compares himself to Zidane in a scene. The others may laugh around him but that is what he feels about himself. The stage that he operates on might be minuscule but that hardly matters to him. He enjoys what he is doing and is not looking for an acknowledgement from anyone. Well there is a message here if you want to see it that way. And this is the mode this film operates on. The makers do not take a moral high ground for you to learn from this film of theirs. What they tend to do however is more powerful. They hold a mirror to your conscience.

Bottom-line

An emotionally fulfilling film and an equally enriching experience.

Rating: 4/5