Review'Thanks Maa', a reality check

Film: Thanks Maa
Director: Irfan Kamal
Cast: Shams Patel, Salman, Almas, Jaffer, Fayyaz
Rating: ***1/2

Debutante director Irfan Kamal’s Thanks Maa is gritty, courageous, realistic and hits you like a ton of bricks. It’s the journey of a street kid on a mission to reunite an abandoned kid with his mother.

Kamal’s directorial debut pricks your conscience and makes you realise that a change is a must. A 12-year-old street kid named Municipality (Shams Patel), while on the run from the reformatory, finds and saves a two-day-old abandoned baby from becoming the prey to a ferocious street dog. When the street kid traces the mother of the child, he learns a bitter truth about life. The truth shatters him.

Thanks Maa has several poignant moments and most of them keep you on the edge. The climax is simply outstanding.
Kamal makes a solid impact as a first-time director. The camera (Ajayan Vincent) follows the protagonist like a shadow. Thanks Maa has sparkling performances by every member of the cast. 

On the whole, it’s truly original, innovative and pioneering cinema.