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Traffic (2011 film)

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Traffic
Theatrical official poster
Directed byRajesh Pillai
Written byBobby Sanjay
Produced byListin Stephen
StarringSreenivasan
Kunchacko Boban
Asif Ali
Anoop Menon
Rahman
Vineeth Sreenivasan
Sandhya
Remya Nambeesan
Narrated bySreenivasan
CinematographyShyju Khalid
Edited byMahesh Narayanan
Music by
Production
company
Distributed byMagic Frames
Release date
  • 7 January 2011 (2011-01-07)
Running time
122 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageMalayalam
Budget₹2.75 crores[1]
Box office₹15 crores[2]

Traffic is a 2011 Indian Malayalam-language road-thriller film written by Bobby-Sanjay and directed by Rajesh Pillai. The film features an ensemble cast of Sreenivasan, Kunchacko Boban, Asif Ali, Vineeth Sreenivasan, Sandhya, Rahman, Anoop Menon, Remya Nambeesan and Roma.[3] The film has its narrative in a hyperlink format. The film was released on 7 January 2011, to a positive reviews and since has been given a cult status. A multi-narrative thriller that intertwines multiple stories around one particular incident, Traffic is inspired from an actual event that happened in Chennai.[4][5] Owing to its critical and commercial success, Traffic was remade into Tamil as Chennaiyil Oru Naal, in Kannada as Crazy Star and is also remade in Hindi, with the same name. This was also the last film of the veteran actor Jose Prakash.[6]

Plot

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On 16 September in Kochi, Sidharth Shankar is preparing for the release of his new film; Traffic Constable Sudevan resumes his duty following a suspension for accepting a bribe to pay the fees for his niece's school admission, cardiologist Dr. Abel is celebrating his first wedding anniversary and Raihan, an aspiring television journalist, starts his new job with an interview with Siddharth Shankar.

At a crowded traffic jam, Raihan and his friend Rajeev, who are travelling together on a bike are hit by a speeding car at the signal. At the same junction in another car is Abel and his friend, Jikku.

On the other hand, Siddharth's daughter Riya is suffering from a heart condition and her condition detoriorates, making her in need of a heart transplant. Raihan falls into a coma and is declared brain dead, although he is kept alive using a ventilator. Raihan's parents refuse to take their son of the ventilator and donate his heart but reluctantly agree on the persuasion of Rajeev, and Raihan's girlfriend Aditi. However, the heart is unable to be transported from Kochi to Palakkad, as there are no helicopters or flights available due to the weather conditions and time concerns; the only option available is via road.

City Police Commissioner Ajmal Nazar is asked to take charge of the mission, but refuses due to the complexity and risk involved. However, he agrees on the insistence of Dr. Simon D' Souza. No officer is willing to drive the vehicle transporting the heart until Sudevan volunteers, hoping to regain the respect he lost. Accompanying him on the mission are Abel and Rajeev.

The mission goes smoothly at first, until Abel holds Rajeev at knife-point, threatening Sudevan that if he didn't comply he would kill Rajeev, forcing Sudevan to deviate from the highway into a forest. After Rajeev retaliates, Abel calls his sister Miriam, and confesses to running over his wife Shwetha, after finding out that she was having an affair with his friend Jikku and that she may have died, therefore he wishes to save himself from the police. Siddharth then calls Abel and promises to help him, though he is not convinced. A frustrated Siddharth's wife Sruthi explains the trauma she has been through because of her daughter's heart condition, and tells him that no other problem could be bigger than this. A finally convinced Abel advises Sudevan and Rajeev to leave without him, however, he is brought along by Sudevan despite being requested by Nazar to have him arrested.

They divert into a road 8km ahead of the scheduled route, making up for the time they lost. Riya's condition begins to worsen, causing Sudevan to take an alternate route through a communally sensitive are called Bilal Colony, where police are restricted from entering due to its strong minority. Rajeev, who is familiar with the area, helps make way for the vehicle to pass along with help of Thanzeer, Siddharth Shankar's Fan Club President whom Siddharth personally called. Abel also leave the vehicle to push two vehicles blocking the route. Sudevan drives at a high speed and reaches the hospital on time, ocvering the 150km feat in an hour and 58 minutes.

Abel is relieved after finding out that Shwetha is in stable condition and has no complaints against him. Rajeev is offered a lift back to Kochi and Raihan's parents accept Aditi and invite her to their home, before doing Raihan's final rites. Riya opens her eyes, much to the relief of her family, and a satisfied Nazar thanks Dr. Simon D'Souza. Sudevan en-route to his home finds a group of people arguing in the middle road over a minor accident, where he signals them to stop, ending the film on a happy note.

Cast

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Production

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The film is directed by Rajesh Pillai.[7] Writers of the film Bobby and Sanjay, who scripted Ente Veedu Appuvinteyum and Notebook explain: "The director wanted the film to be of a different mould altogether. Here every character is of equal importance as the story moves ahead. It was quite a challenging task but an enjoyable experience as well."[8] They add that the film is inspired by a true incident. A similar mission was successfully carried out by the Tamil Nadu police in a more complex Chennai city.[8][failed verification] Also, in a scene, the character played by Anoop Menon talks about the incident.

Traffic is one of the first multi narratives made in this decade in Malayalam film. The film has Sreenivasan, Rahman, Kunchacko Boban and Asif Ali as the four lead protagonists whose stories are narrated through the sequences.[9][8] On the theme, Rajesh says, "I felt it was a theme that could connect with viewers regardless of their age. It's a contemporary theme that reassures us that if we approach something with honesty, even nature will come to our support."[10] The film will be the second on-screen pairing of Vineeth and Sreenivasan, after their first film Makante Achan.[7]

Reception

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Critical response

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The film opened on 7 January 2011 to positive reviews. Veeyen of Nowrunning.com gave the film 3 out of 5 stars, writing, "Rajesh Pillai's Traffic is a brutally brilliant film in which he lends color to coincidence and unveils before us cogitation on the dynamics of chance. A strikingly crafted film that is raw and genuine, it crawls right under your skin and stays there."[11] IndiaGlitz enthusiastically praised the film's "riveting plot, great performances, soulful music... and skillful direction".[12] A review at Cinefundas also praised the acting, adding that "the real hero of the film is the script".[13] Sify.com called it "an overwhelming experience" and rated it as "very good."[14] The Malayalam website Movieraga called it an "excellent movie" and went on to state that the new blood of Malayalam cinema cannot be seen as second-grade any more.[15] The movie was part of the series of movies that began the New Generation Movement.[16]

Traffic was screened in the Malayalam Cinema Today section at the 16th International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK), in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala in 2011.[17]

Box office

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The film received highly positive reviews and was declared a blockbuster at box office.[18][19]

Soundtrack

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Traffic
Soundtrack album by
Mejo Joseph
Released25 December 2010 (2010-12-25)
Recorded2010
GenreFilm soundtrack
Length25:32
LanguageMalayalam
LabelSatyam Audios
ProducerMejo Joseph
Mejo Joseph chronology
Kanmazha Peyyum Munpe
(2010) 		Traffic
(2010) 		Chapters
(2012)

All lyrics are written by S. Ramesan Nair except where noted; all music is composed by Samson Kottoor except where noted

No.TitleLyricsMusicArtistsLength
1."Kannerinjal" Mejo JosephVipin Warrier, Hesham Abdul Wahab 
2."Pakalin"Vayalar Sarath Chandra VarmaMejo JosephSithara 
3."Unaroo Mizhiyazhake"  Chinmayi 
4."Unaroo Mizhiyazhake"  Samson Kottoor 
5."Unaroo Mizhiyazhake" (Instrumental)  Kalyan 
6."Theme Music" (Instrumental) Samson Kottoor  

Remakes

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Year Film Language
2013 Chennaiyil Oru Naal Tamil
2014 Crazy Star Kannada
2016 Traffic Hindi

Owing to its critical and commercial success, Traffic was remade in Tamil as Chennaiyil Oru Naal (2013), which was a huge success at box office like Traffic. Kannada remake Crazy Star (2014) received negative reception from both critics and box-office. Traffic's Hindi remake was released in May 2016.[20][21]

Awards

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Award Category Result Recipient Ref.
Kerala State Film Awards 2011 Best Screenplay Won Bobby-Sanjay [22]
1st South Indian International Movie Awards Best Director Won Rajesh Pillai
Best Actress in a Supporting Role Won Lena
Filmfare Awards South 2012 Best Film Won Listin Stephen [23]
Best Supporting Actress Won Lena Abhilash
Kerala Film Critics Awards Best Script Won Bobby-Sanjay [24]
Second Best Actor – Male Won Anoop Menon
Second Best Actor – Female Won Lena Abhilash
Lohithadas Award Best Script Won Bobby-Sanjay [25]
Asianet Film Awards 2012 Best Film Nominated Listin Stephen [26]
Best Director Nominated Rajesh Pillai
Best Screenplay Won Bobby-Sanjay
Best Supporting Actor Nominated Anoop Menon
Best Supporting Actress Nominated Remya Nambeesan
Best Character Actor Nominated Sreenivasan
Asiavision Movie Awards Best Popular Movie Won Listin Stephen [27]
Second Best Actor Won Anoop Menon
Best Screenplay Won Bobby-Sanjay
Special Performance Award Won Rahman
Trendsetter Award Won Listin Stephen
Nana Film Awards Best Film Won Listin Stephen [28]
Best Director Won Rajesh Pillai
Best Editor Won Mahesh Narayanan
Mathrubhumi Kalyan Silks Film Awards Best Screenplay Won Bobby-Sanjay [29]
Best Path Breaking Film of the Year Nominated Listin Stephen
Surya Film Awards Most Popular Director Nominated Rajesh Pillai
Best Editor Won Mahesh Narayanan
Kochi Times Awards Best Script Won Bobby – Sanjay [30]
Amrita Film Awards 2012 Best Supporting Actor (Female) Won Lena Abhilash [31]
Best Script Won Bobby-Sanjay
Trendsetting Film Director Won Rajesh Pillai
Jaihind Film Awards 2012 Best Director Won Rajesh Pillai [citation needed]
Film Guidance Chalachitra Awards 2011 Best Supporting Actress Won Remya Nambeesan [32]
Reporter TV Film Awards 2012 Best Film Won Listin Stephen [33]
Best Director Won Rajesh Pillai
Best Script Won Bobby-Sanjay
Best Editor Won Mahesh Narayanan
Best Supporting Actress Won Lena Abhilash
Thikkurissy Awards 2011 Best Second Actress Won Sandhya

References

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  1. ^ "2011 was troublesome for Malayalam films". News18. 4 January 2012.
  2. ^ Manoj Nair (21 May 2011). "Malayalam movies: Non-linear narratives are making the box-office ring louder". India Times. Economic Times.
  3. ^ Coming up: A complex Traffic – Rediff.com Movies
  4. ^ "Hithendran Incident".
  5. ^ "Traffic Movie Review". Archived from the original on 19 August 2010.
  6. ^ "Veteran Malayalam actor Jose Prakash passes away". The Times of India. 24 March 2012. Archived from the original on 11 January 2014.
  7. ^ a b "Vineeth and Sreenivasan in 'Traffic'". Indiaglitz. Archived from the original on 12 February 2010. Retrieved 10 February 2010.
  8. ^ a b c Vijay George (30 September 2010). "It happened one day..." The Hindu. Chennai, India. Retrieved 30 September 2010.
  9. ^ "'Traffic' to start this July". Indiaglitz. Archived from the original on 21 June 2010. Retrieved 18 June 2010.
  10. ^ Vijay George (13 January 2011). "Traffic gets green signal". The Hindu. Chennai, India.
  11. ^ "Rajesh Pillai's Traffic is a brutally brilliant film!". Nowrunning. Retrieved 8 January 2011.
  12. ^ "Traffic – This is a 'Traffic' of change". IndiaGlitz. 8 January 2011.
  13. ^ "Traffic – Malayalam Movie Review". Archived 11 January 2011 at the Wayback Machine CineFundas.com. 7 January 2011.
  14. ^ Movie Review:Traffic review
  15. ^ Review: Traffic | MOVIERAGA
  16. ^ "When script trumps superstars: How Malayalam cinema has changed in the last decade". The News Minute. 31 December 2019. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  17. ^ "A slice of Kerala". The New Indian Express. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016.
  18. ^ "Kaavalan to Meendum Oru Kadhal Kadhai: 5 Malayalam remakes that shouldn't have been made". India Today. 28 August 2016.
  19. ^ "2011: Malayalam filmdom failed to script success". News18. 21 December 2011.
  20. ^ "Malayalam 'Traffic' to Be Remade in Tamil?". Top 10 Cinema. 1 February 2011. Archived from the original on 4 February 2011. Retrieved 2 February 2011.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  21. ^ "ട്രാഫിക് ഹിന്ദിയിലും". (in Malayalam) Kerala Kaumudi. 11 April 2011. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  22. ^ "Kerala State Film Awards". Nowrunning.com. Archived from the original on 21 July 2012. Retrieved 19 July 2012.
  23. ^ "Filmfare Awards South 2012". Kollyinsider.com. 8 July 2012.
  24. ^ "Kerala Film Critics Awards 2012". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 18 May 2012.
  25. ^ "ലോഹിതദാസ് പുരസ്‌കാരം ബോബിക്കും സഞ്ജയിനും". Mathrubhumi. Archived from the original on 28 June 2012. Retrieved 29 June 2012.
  26. ^ "Asianet Film Awards 2011". Trivandrum.co.in.
  27. ^ "Asiavision Movie Awards". Asiavisionawards.com. Archived from the original on 25 January 2012.
  28. ^ "Nana Film Awards 2011". Nana.com. Archived from the original on 10 July 2012.
  29. ^ "Mathrubhumi Film Awards 2011". Sanscinema.com. Archived from the original on 14 March 2012. Retrieved 19 March 2012.
  30. ^ "Kochi Times Film Awards 2011". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 4 October 2013.
  31. ^ "Amrita Film Awards 2012". Amritatv.com. Archived from the original on 14 October 2013.
  32. ^ "Film Guidance Chalachitra Award 2011". Oneindia.in. Archived from the original on 9 June 2021. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  33. ^ "Reporter TV Film Awards 2012". Metromatinee.com.
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Further reading

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