SUDANI FROM NIGERIA (MALAYALAM) (2018)

The movie is set in a village in Northern Kerala in the milieu of the Sevens football tournament (7 persons per side as against the regular 11) which is quite popular in that region. Majid (Soubin Shahir) is a school dropout and as a result, is unable to seek any permanent employment to secure his livelihood. However, he is passionate about football and is also manager of a local football team - MYC Accode - along with his friends. Their team, which includes three africans as star players, is popular among the fans and is also reasonably successful despite facing financial challenges. When Samuel  - aka Sudu (short for Sudani) - (Samuel Abiola Robinson) - who is one of the star players meets with an accident, he is ruled out from the rest of the tournament. 

The injury puts Samuel in a desperate situation since he is not in a position to earn any more from the games which is the sole support for him as well as his family back home in Nigeria. It also means more financial outgo for a club whose finances are already precariously perched. In order to avoid hospital care expenses during the recovery period, Majid decides to bring Samuel to his home. Majid lives with his aged mother Jameela (Savithri Sreedharan) and estranged stepfather (KTC Abdulla) who works as a security guard. However, he is bitter with both of them due to reasons buried in the past and turns down their repeated warm overtures. Samuel is eager to return home to support his family, but is hobbled by reasons that are far more serious than his injury. What unfolds is an endearing narrative of humanity, hope and warmth that seeks to explore these distances - both physical and emotional.

Debutante director Zakariya Mohammed crafts this simple premise into a gem of a movie that is rich in emotions and drama. While Majid's family and his friends may be of limited means, the movie effortlessly portrays the magnanimity of such simple people with minimal means which reinforces the dictum that you do not have to be wealthy to be generous. 

The common thread that binds the entire narrative is that humanity is all that one needs to connect to a fellow being separated by any barrier. Through multiple interactions between Majid's mother and Samuel, the movie extols that differences in cultures and especially languages need not necessarily be insurmountable impediments in connecting to people.  A gentle smile and moist eyes are part of  universal language of love and humanity and they can communicate much more fluently and deeply than man-made contraptions for communication like our languages. When one can connect so easily beyond the contours of creed, nationality, ethnicity, religion or language, one tends to doubt the need for such markers which seem to be mere tools for division rather than cohesion.The movie is frequently funny as the director mines multiple references to sports, local culture and difference in language for laughs. The performances of both the leads - Soubin Shahir and Samuel with his winning smile - are apt and they are ably supported by the cameos from veterans KTC Abdulla and Savithri Sreedharan.

Malayalam cinema continues to churn out these gems in regular intervals where simple stories are brought to life in an appealing manner without resorting to raucous melodrama or any garish glitz of stars who tend to turn the focus from the story towards themselves. Director Zakariya Mohammed acquits himself as a welcome addition to the league of exemplary torchbearers of this great tradition.

AN EXCELLENT WATCH !!

RATING - 3.5/5