Parking
Introduction
It is a Wednesday and this week has provided me an opportunity to scout for content from back home while also covering some of the foreign films which are doing the rounds across the globe. And I have tried to utilize this period for bridging the gap before I get to the year end lists of the best and worst films by language on our portal. With that, I finished watching the new Tamil film Parking which is now streaming on Hotstar. The title in itself does give a glimpse on what to expect from the drama. Yes, it is a film centered around the Parking issue which is a superficial but relevant problem in today’s times. These days there are dedicated slots for vehicles to be parked in the premises. But despite that, with the advent of the number of vehicles on the road, the parking issue continues to contribute to problems. This is particularly true for individuals who stay in a shared space, and hence have to share their parking slots too, thus fuelling the inflated ego. And so, I was curious on what levels of one-upmanship does the film Parking have to offer, does it manage to impress, let’s find out.
Story & Screenplay
Parking follows the story of two individuals from different age groups who are at logger-heads with each other due to parking space constraint in their locality. As the issue escalates, so do their egos. The story is engaging and it briefly reminded me of the Malayalam film Ayappanum Koshiyam with a different setting ofcourse. The difference between the two tales is that while Ayappanum Koshiyam was a little nuanced and understated, Parking is a little in your face. This is not a bad thing either given that the drama does set a friendly tone to begin with before raising the intensity levels, bit by bit. The screenplay standing at a shade above 2 hours is most definitely engaging and compelling while providing an engrossing premise which acts as a building block for the simmering intensity.
The drama does begin with the introduction of one of the protagonists, a young IT employee in his late 20s who visits a flat that he intends to rent, for him and his pregnant wife. While the intended flat is on the first floor, there is a family staying as tenants on the ground floor featuring an elderly man, stingy by nature and quite grumpy at times. The conflict is the little parking area that is sufficient to park only a single vehicle. And the dynamics that begins on a friendly note between the two males of the families soon escalates after one of them buys a car. The space issue of parking that seemed harmless at first(given that one of them owned a bike), soon transforms into an ego tussle as the other party purchases a car too.
The proceedings are engaging and engrossing while predominantly following a definitive rhythmic beat in the drama. There is a constant game of one-upmanship wherein both parties throw punches at each other. The little cat and mouse chase between the two parties is fun to witness until the halfway mark post which the game gets uglier. The situation still remains trivial but the tensions escalate to a whole new level with false accusations being the new normal for both parties. The drama gallops at a fair clip which might be predictable but supremely entertaining. It is only in the final act that the drama slightly misses the mark when both protagonists go bonkers over each other. The whole ‘attempted murder’ angle was a bit too much and didn’t quite fit the tone of the drama while attempting to be shocking in many ways. But apart from the stumble in the final act, the journey overall was entertaining and engrossing nevertheless.
Dialogues, Music & Direction
The dialogues begin with a playful tone but soon transform into something more intense much like the beats in the drama. The music and BGM blend well with the tone of the drama. The cinematography captures some stellar frames particularly in the face-off moments that exude of tension. The editing is crisp and sharp so much so that the repetitive theme of the drama also doesn’t weigh it down. Director Ramkumar Balakrishnan does a brilliant job in constructing a playfully intense drama with some well developed characters. I liked how he uncannily introduced the intensity in the drama and slowly began to escalate it without you realising it. This required some levels of skill and the debutant director showcased some much needed grit. The tension in the drama was always palpable and for that the director deserves a lot of credit.
Performances
The performances are pretty good here by the ensemble cast. Rama as the loud mouthed Paruthi has her moments to shine. Prathana Nathan as Aparna is earnest and has a streak of innocence to accompany her character, and she does a swell job. Indhuja Ravichandra as Aathika is wonderfully restrained and offers the much needed calmness to the otherwise intense drama. MS Bhaskar as Ilamparithi is so much fun to watch. His character begins on a playful note before showcasing his true colours and I liked how he internalized his aggression in what was a stellar act. Harish Kalyan as Eeshwar is terrific as well in a job well done. His screen presence is amazing too and there is an inherent sense of ease when he faces the camera.
Conclusion
Despite a stutter at the end, Parking is an engaging ego-tussle backed by good performances packaged in a playfully raging drama that makes for a wonderful watch. Available on Hotstar.