Cast- Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan
Director- Amith Krishnan
Duration- 1 hour 22 minutes
Ratings- 3 stars
Termed as the ‘Lady Superstar’, actress Nayanthara released her documentary film on Netflix. ‘Nayanthara: Beyond the Fairytale’ highlights the rapid rise of South Indian cinema’s reigning queen, Nayanthara. The documentary, told in a non-linear fashion, is a hymn to resilience, ambition, and love, following Diana Kurien’s transformation from a Malayali Christian girl from Kottayam to the Lady Superstar who has conquered Tamil, Telugu, and Malayalam cinema. It promises a depiction of hope and happiness, but, like its title, it treads a delicate line between truth and Disney-esque dream.
Vignesh Shivan- The perfect husband
Vignesh Shivan, Nayanthara’s spouse and filmmaker, plays a significant role in the documentary. She sees him as the lover “her soul has been searching for,” the respite from her chaos. While their story emanates a sense of romantic hopefulness, Nayanthara’s idolisation of her lover for merely being there for her is sometimes unsettling. However, given that most women in turbulent relationships are programmed to see fundamental emotional safety as the only standard, it is clear why a steady spouse makes her so pleased. And in Nayanthara’s universe, love, connection, and a sense of belonging are essential.
What did not work
As a biographical documentary, the film presents an imperfect portrayal of the actor, focussing on her professional choices and forays into film production and entrepreneurship. There is very minimal commentary on the film industry, particularly now that women are speaking out against institutional harassment and financial disparity. Sometimes there are too many repetitive things which may want you to forward a little and not hold your attention.
Conclusion
The film also plays it safe, without mentioning stardom, even though she has worked with the industry’s big actors. It also ignores patriarchal criteria for female representation on television. Nayanthara’s career has been fraught with controversy, sparked by both personal and professional events. However, the documentary avoids such instances, which is extremely startling, making the whole undertaking appear like an attempt to create a certain carefully curated image of the actor.
