Aasha review: Urvashi's towering performance lifts a mystery that loses its way
Urvashi delivers a standout turn in Aasha, a Malayalam mystery whose promising premise gives way to a contrived and abrupt ending.
Some films are remembered for a single scene, or a single performance, long after their other shortcomings fade from memory. Safar Sanal's Malayalam film Aasha belongs to that category, carried almost entirely by Urvashi's intense portrayal of its titular character.
The film's most striking sequence pairs Aasha with a doctor, a moment that could easily have been a routine scene of a mother grasping that something terrible may have befallen her daughter. Urvashi instead invests it with unusual depth, capturing not just a parent's immediate fear but also a mind already worn thin. Her stammered words, shifting voice, and unsteady hand as she tries to sign a document together convey the scale of her inner turmoil.
Aasha remains in a disturbed state for much of the film, from a tense encounter at a bank in the opening scene to her anxieties over her daughter Anagha's (Aishwarya Lekshmi) marriage. One of the few moments she smiles comes in the company of her neighbour (Vijayaraghavan). Her life otherwise follows a relatively ordinary course until a dispute over a road accident brings her into conflict with Jeemon (Joju George).
For a while, the film hints at a battle of egos along the lines of Ayyappanum Koshiyum (2020). Halfway through, it swerves into far darker territory, and it is here that the screenplay, co-written by Joju, Ramesh Girija and Safar Sanal, loses its grip. Just as Aasha finds herself trapped in a situation of her own making, the writers appear unsure how to resolve it, and the abrupt, unsatisfying ending underscores that uncertainty.
The central conflict rests on shaky ground as well. Aasha's drastic actions stem from assumptions about a situation, yet the audience is unlikely to be surprised when she finally sees the full picture. Several other sequences feel contrived for cinematic convenience. The music, the sound design by Ajayan Adat (who also plays a key role), and other technical departments work well to heighten the dark mood of the later portions, but without stronger writing they fail to land as intended.
What remains is Urvashi's fierce work in select sequences, comparable to a lone cricketer playing a stellar innings in a losing cause, a knock so fine that the result ceases to matter. It is also a reminder of how underused she has been in Malayalam cinema of late. With a sturdier foundation beneath her, the film might have been a gem.
Aasha is currently running in theatres.