POPCORN REVIEWSS

Written by Madhan, the crucial selling point of With Love remains its characterization. When you are first introduced to Sathya (Abishan Jeevinth), you are told that he is a designer by profession. But unlike a stylized image that you may have of the character, you see him donning pale shades of blue while living a life of solitude – both for which he is called out by his sister. In an early scene, you see him being pestered for marriage, a formality that includes having to meet his prospective partner – something that he resists before giving in. You are unsure of his stance at the start, only slowly to be acquainted with his past that included a heartbreak during his childhood.

And in many ways, each of these qualities do apply to Monisha (Anaswara Rajan) as well. She is an influencer – popular with people around her, but poor in the matters of the heart. Interestingly, both the protagonists aren’t overtly ambitious as well – a trait that automatically lowers the intensity of the drama and heightens its breeziness.

The premise almost follows the tropes of Before Sunrise – two strangers meet, exchange thoughts in a brewing and meandering conversation, and eventually falling in love. And yet, there is a hint of freshness and familiarity in the equation that Sathya and Monisha share. Through a series of flashbacks, you do get to know that each of Sathya and Monisha have had a heartbreak – but the subtext remains that of fate, something that made them cross paths with each other many times in school, but never really brought them to interact with each other. In other words, both the protagonists felt so spent and consumed with their individual heartbreaks then, that they couldn’t really see the world around them.

There is a hint of nostalgia tapped into the proceedings, even through the classroom scenes that involved quick glances with streaks of shyness, or the idea of being beaten up in front of your crush by teachers, or the passages involving writing exams or celebrating friendship in general. The moments felt christened in the early 2000s classroom wherein the only medium of virtual communication remained a Nokia phone and Facebook messenger.

It is interesting to note on how there is a clear demarcation between the male and female characters here based on the practicality of the situation. For instance, most female characters have a practical approach to the situation – be it Sathya’s sister who pacifies him in a scene by stating that she will find a better girl for him, or even Anisha (Kavya Anil) – Sathya’s crush who silently observes his clumsy approaches without making the first move, or even Monisha who comes up with the bizarre idea of meeting their crushes (no matter where they are in their respective lives) – just so that a chapter of the past can be closed.

In a sharp contrast, the men aren’t equipped with handling emotions here. Be it Sathya’s father who is caught in the ghost of his past of wanting to open a restaurant just because he would feel close to his dead wife, or Sathya’s friend who secretly (and hilariously) loves Anisha, or even Balaji (Sacchin Nachiappan) who remains reserved for most parts of the drama whilst secretly holding onto his feelings for Monisha. Or even Sathya who doesn’t know how to deal with heartbreak – he cries and drinks while occasionally drunk dialling his ‘traitor friend’ or his sister or even his other friends.

There are minor slip-ups in the proceedings here with respect to a couple of subplots that didn’t fully land for me. Be it Sathya’s misunderstanding with his teacher that resulted in him crossing the boundary, or his tryst with his other competitor that ended with a simplistic resolution. These moments work in isolation but marginally take you out of the core drama at hand. But the beautiful of the proceedings lies in its breezy outlook to the drama wherein every scene of intensity is backed by a lighter moment, a couple of reels away – something that never allows the drama to be bogged down.

Even the complications of technology in the modern setup are met with a tinge of humour here – in a scene, you see Sathya hilariously commenting his phone number on Monisha’a post. And that honestly the dynamic between Monisha and Sathya remains the core of the drama here. They find romance in a new age era with their roots possessing an old school charm. You see their friendship more than anything else. Even when in the same room, Sathya opts to leave when she wishes to change clothes. Moments of insecurity are dealt with an accurate bout of communication. Also in a scene involving intimacy, you see Monisha telling Sathya who by then is completely in love with her, that it happened just because they were drunk. It is a way of encapsulating the friendship that precedes the romance in a tale of equals that absolutely hits home by the end of the drama.