Padavettu depicts the essence of Indian politics through the struggles of a rural village and a protagonist who rises up to the occasion after living the longest time in his own failures. The film brilliantly draws out the characters, their existence in the land and the different sides of politics very clearly.
All the characters are very flawed in their own ways which are also very realistic and relatable. I've seen other films that have shown similar character arcs like that of Nivin in this film. But what made this really different is that there were many moments in this film where in another film it would be a point where he starts doing something different. But here, his fears and doubts are given so much focus all the while he arrogantly walks away from everything he should be facing. It felt so real and raw that he took this much time to do something and even when he does something it doesn't change everything immediately. The time taken for the transition made it feel very real.
Talking about the politics of the film, on one side there are genuine politicians who are still in the trappings of being a politician with decades of political culture that still drags down their ideologies. They do the work in the way they know and are comfortable with. Which is not really that great for the common people at first glance. On the other side, there are those who see this as the opportunity to rise up and take the power using the power they have with money, ultimately aiming to make even more money. These businessmen may not only use sweet words and investments into the people like the movie says loud but also uses various methods to create a divide between the people to their own benefit.
It's also worth noting that this film also uses the myths of the land like Theyyam at times and even wild boars like the recent Kannada film Kantara even though this doesn't really have any mystical element in this and uses them as metaphors that are motivating.
The plot is not really anything new to Malayalam cinema. But the way the different aspects are explored in the movie makes it one of the best attempts to use this plot. But the biggest positive of the movie being the exploration of those aspects ends up as the negative too in a way. When the movie ends and says to be continued, it really feels like half a movie that ended at a great interval punch. There are a lot of characters that are only explored enough as in the first half of a movie and need more exploration. The politics, as strong as the movie depicted it, could only be completed with the rest of the story. With the not-so-great box office collection and other issues in the background of the film, that doesn't look too hopeful.
