Halal Love Story (2020) User Reviews

Why HALAL LOVE STORY

[projectconnect · 7/10 · 15 October 2020]

When the members of a popular Islamic organisation decide to make a telefilm, writer Toufeek played by Sharaf U Dheen along with other members assembles village members to act in the film helmed by Siraj played by Joju George.

Halal Love Story is a 'film within a film' . We have come across many movies of the same format including the critically acclaimed Jigarthanda. Here director Zakariya chose to play within his safe zone,the same what we witnessed in KL 10 and Sudani from Nigeria. The film opens up slowly showing landscape beauty of Malabar region and some of you may find it uninteresting that the narrative and dialogues are so rooted to the Malabar Muslim culture. The proceedings get back on track when the shooting episode starts with some genuine hilarious situations revolving around the shooting spot.

Among the bunch of acclaimed artists Grace Antony excels. It's good to see the talented actress getting meaty roles. Indrajith as the struggling artist and pompous husband was a real treat. Joju George , Sharaf U Dheen, Parvathy, Soubin and rest of the cast make a decent impact with their act. Zakariya has retained most of the faces from his last outing.

Halal love story is more like a satirical approach dealing with some of the conservative, orthodox minds and creates situational comedy out of religious absurdity rather than outright mocking. The bland, lustreless portions were saved by the quirky, subtle humour. Thanks to the breathtaking shots by Ajay Menon, the stupendous, colourful frames lighten up the mood of the film. Songs by Shahabaz Aman, Rex Vijayan, Bijibal, Neha Nair were soothing.

Halal Love may not cater to all sections of the audience. This heartwarming, funny tale by Zakariya is par below his former outing yet enjoyable considering its simplistic nature.

Finely crafted Family entertainer.

[msabiraam · 7/10 · 15 October 2020]

This one from director Zakariya is a feel good comedy movie with a good cast and crew.It efficiently portrays simple human lives beautifully. The movie served as a portrait with realistic human emotions. The best thing about this movie is its short run-time of just 2 hours...and this helped in balancing the absence of a powerful script. Zakariya has done a fine job.Indrajith,Sharafudeen, Grace and Joju George have also done commendable work.

Family entertainment comedy film

[hishampnk · 7/10 · 15 October 2020]

It is a family entertainment comedy film. Film is based on a story of school master from a semi Orthodox community who like to take a movie. The movie presenting the challenges he faced in comedy way.

I'm smiling

[koshyalexkoshy-38385 · 15 October 2020]

It's just a simple movie that made me smile and filled my heart with happiness. Nothing more, nothing less. And that smile on my face, that happiness in my heart, means a lot to me.

A possible master piece, that did not reach its potential. An above average outing.

[geonofear · 6/10 · 19 October 2020]

Here is the beef I have with this film. There is an element of artificiality in the film that unfortunately layers on top of the subtlety the makers tried to bring. This is not evident throughout the film but the artificiality creeps its head up here and there and it was distracting for me. At times it felt a bit preachy, indirectly though, trying to convey an agenda that is not very evident.

For e.g. Suhra played by Grace Antony's reaction at times felt a bit over the top to elicit a funny reaction especially in the initial chemistry between Suhra's husband and her. It feels not as flowing as how her performance has been in Kumbalangi Nights were she was brilliant.

Haseena played by Parvathy Thiruvothu looked at times out of place as a coach and mentor. In recent films especially, in Virus and this, you feel the actor is somehow conscious of the camera in the room. We have seen Parvathy's acting prowess and naturality in her early acting career which seems to be MIA.

There is a Soundman in the film, played by Soubin, who helps the film makers within the story direct the short film; his gimmicks were funny but left the viewers wondering why he quit the project early and gave us the feeling that he was forcefully brought in for certain humour creation. When the audience feels this element while watching the film it translates into a forced artificiality of the story.

Towards the end several dialogues and scenes felt like an attempt to preach to the audience that the characters' idiosyncratic religious believes are a real aspect of human life and should be accepted by all. That preachiness, came across in the film which I thought was a bit distracting.

These are just 4 examples. There are some more spread across the film.

The plus of this film is obviously the story which is so different, the acting by most characters, the subtle humorous situations all helped create a feel good film.

Overall, this is an above average film and some audience would want to see it more than once which is a definite plus.

A nice and feel-good movie

[muhammedzeninzash · 7/10 · 20 October 2020]

Director zakariya has succeeded blendie art and the push which keeps you watching the movie.With its humour,art,politics and outstanding acting this surely is a visual treat.One of the underated feel-good movie Malayalam industry have

Simple but not perfect

[mahiscorner · 7/10 · 15 October 2020]

A good attempt by Zakariya... Normally people from other communities won't be able to understand it in a right way as those who inside it. I really happy about this movie but if you are trying to make a realistic movie, then it should be a realistic one. Don't try to make it complicated by mixing reality and drama. For example when the police station scene comes, why you people tried to make a drama over there? There is no need for a police man to walk with another guy towards the station, felt like you people were trying to make it in the same as those drama people does. This is only one example. If you people are trying to make a realistic movie then need not to worry about such scenes, we were able to understand it. Don't underestimate viewers. Make it simple, make every scenes in a realistic way. I actually wanted to give 7 out of 10 but some spoilers are trying to decrease the rating. I don't want a good movie to die before it grow, so i am giving 8.

NB. Simple, crisp and a realistic one time watch movie. Worth for your time. Good attempt but needed some improvements.

Lame attempt

[dudeasterisk · 1/10 · 15 October 2020]

Great sleeping pill.. Now I'm not trying to throw dirt on any particular community.. I had high expectations but this felt more like they were trying to glorify something. The script should have been better

Refreshing...feel good movie..

[mohdashik-42534 · 10/10 · 19 October 2020]

Personally...i really liked this movie...watch this movie for some amazing performances by Joju geogre, indrajith, grace antony and Sharafudheen...everyone acted so brilliantly...one of the best malayalam movies in recent times..

An one-time watchable affair.

[Azanspy · 6/10 · 15 October 2020]

The standards set by Zakariya's debut movie 'Sudani from Nigeria' is so high that there's little chance he can achieve it again. Halal Love Story is a good second attempt by him. This movie has problems that his first movie didn't have. The performances is the best aspect of the movie. All actors have outdone themselves. The music and songs are also good and helped with the overall pace and mood of the movie. Overall, this is a cute little movie which has it's moments and is watchable for it. You'll be contend

Yawn guaranteed

[sanjeevu-95400 · 1/10 · 15 October 2020]

Yawn guaranteed couldn't watch for 15 Min , worst Yawn guaranteed couldn't watch for 15 Min , worst Yawn guaranteed couldn't watch for 15 Min , worst Yawn guaranteed couldn't watch for 15 Min , worst

For those of you who are orthodox and Love art

[Faizi07 · 8/10 · 16 October 2020]

Its something very new. Some people might get irritated. People who are not open minded won't be able to enjoy it. Those who are not secular, this is not something for you. This is local, a malabari version of some views. It's different its good. But could have been better within the limits

A big step down from Sudani.. but the likeable cast saves the film! [+55%]

[arungeorge13 · 6/10 · 16 October 2020]

Halal Love Story definitely lacks the energy and emotional core of Sudani from Nigeria (Zakariya's brilliant previous film) but the performances keep it afloat. Telling the story of a conservative community trying to make a film that is halal (permissible) enough for their audiences, director Zakariya and co-writer Muhsin Parari bring back much of the cast from Sudani.. in supporting roles (including Soubin in a LOL-worthy cameo). Parvathy Thiruvothu also shows up as an acting trainer and even sets up an emotionally-affecting, difficult-to-discuss situation between the film's lead couple, played by Indrajith and Grace Antony (terrific!).

The problem with Halal Love Story is not in its performances. The ensemble does a fine job with their respective characters - Joju George (as Siraj, the film's director), Sharafudheen (Thoufiq, the writer trying to work his best within the confines of the organization he's allied to), Nazar Karutheny (Raheem, who tries to make the film's shoot a smooth-sail), and everyone else. The central conflict in Halal Love Story (as the title suggests) is how the husband and wife slowly drift apart and eventually reunite. The writing in these portions could have been better. Instead, they stick to metaphors on oil and a song to swiftly wind things up.

The subplot, involving Siraj's failed marriage could have actually been leveraged to further refine the central plot. However, none of that happens. Halal Love Story sticks to the feel-good template, managing to raise a few situational laughs in the process. It's nowhere near Zakariya's best effort (in terms of messaging), that's for sure. But given the minimal number of films coming out these days, Halal Love Story can be watched with slightly lowered expectations.

Waste of time

[nkvinoopc · 1/10 · 18 October 2020]

Wasting our time , bad movie . Bad story . Boring full time

halal muslim story

[aaarru · 18 October 2020]

Better to rename the film as "halal muslim story".. nice cinemotography... and also we need to appreciate the awsome performance of sharafuddine.. other wise its tottaly a halal muslim story...

Good movie

[abdulsamad-39779 · 7/10 · 17 October 2020]

A Feel good Family Movie with moral values, Good character casting & casting is good too

Not a must watch,will like if you are a movie lover

[omalvettathuk · 7/10 · 15 October 2020]

It's not the story but the effort of Of everyone in the movie that makes it agreat view

A story told in a puritan's shoes

[toby_philips · 6/10 · 26 November 2020]

A simple but thoughtful yet, the theme sparks the idea of 'what if' a buch or orthodox believers of a particular doctrine attempt to make a movie and don't want to portray anything taboo, by submerging strong emotions in a way that does not hurt the religion/beliefs. Good theme, but at times viewers may be turned away due continuous strip of similar light moments and absence of heavy drama or thrill that one may expect in the way. Regardless if one determines to glue themselves watching till the end, they may carry something. After all it's a feel good move: a hard one time watch.

Love story in the backdrop of a religious satire

[cinish · 8/10 · 18 October 2020]

Great performances by Grace Antony, Joju George, Sharafudeen, Indrajith, and the other character actors as well. Casting has been done well as well.

Subtle and original humor all through the movie.

Against the backdrop of humor, sudden presentations of problems in the characters' lives has been done naturally and convincingly.

While the movie seems to take it's time presenting humor with the process of shooting, it suddenly gets into deeper aspects of actor training, and leverages that to get into the actual life of the characters.

Context of the movie has a very specific islamic background, and hence there is a certain lack of universal reach from that perspective as compared to Zakariya's previous movie "Sudani from Nigeria" which had much more access.

The relationship theme choice is unique and impressive. It is mostly a political satire, and hence is not as much heart as Sudani, but definitely a crafty and original venture from Zakariya. Some of the material from the making process of Sudani has most likely made it's way into the theme of Halal.

The 'Halal' art

[sudhakaranakhilan · 6/10 · 5 November 2020]

Halal Love Story talks about the concept of pure art in the sense of the so-called pure in the conservative Muslim society in the North of Kerala. Their ideologies behind religion and politics are correlated with the conceptions of their specific society. In the sense of the Muslim community, the term Halal refers to pure. That purity is not applicable in the common diaspora because we've to peel out the Islamic representation of many things around our society. Here they want to make a film, a telefilm and that must be encircled on their periphery. So from the subject to the making they deliberately thought about the ideas around their beliefs. The script was written in that mood and even though the characters also. They wandered to hire an original husband and wife to do the role of husband and wife in the cinema. So every progress in the shooting has to be restricted according to their beliefs. From that aspect to the next level the film got its deviation and it centered around the life of Suhra and Shareef, their problems associates with their marriage. The film also opens up the collapsed marriage life of Siraj, the director of the telefilm. The movie discusses some of the misconceptions around the conservative section of society. It's a satire to the people or the section who were always chained into their on peripheries.

Over hyped and under performance

[uiconsol · 1/10 · 16 October 2020]

Movie is slow and lacks a good story line. Had high expectations considering the trailer looked promising. But the actual product was poor..

Simple and realistic

[vjnambu · 8/10 · 18 October 2020]

Halal love story is zakariya's 2nd directorial venture after sudani from Nigeria which is one of my personal favorite films. When, I heard that its releasing in ott, I was a bit sad because i wished it was released in theatres. The plot is based on a bunch of passionate filmmakers from malabar who want to make a telefilm for their community. Rest of the film are the events following the making. The story is very thin, but its the direction which keeps the movie forward which is as realistic as the director's previous film. The next area it shines are the performances. The best performer was grace antony whose potential must be used in future. Indrajith as usual gives a sincere performance, but couldn't perfect the malabar slang. Joju shines in many portions. From all the films i have seen, this is the first time I am seeing sharafudeen in a gentleman kind of role. Parvathy's cameo was okay but soubin's cameo was awesome. The cinematography is another asset. But the storyline is too simple which will disappoint many who are expecting another sudani from Nigeria. And in entertainment level, this one is neither funny nor emotional, it stays somewhere in the middle. On the whole, realistic filmmaking and artist performances save halal love story. I personally liked, but don't watch it with too many expectations.

A charming satire where the supporting characters shine more than the lead pair!

[nidhunmoviebuff · 7/10 · 15 October 2020]

If Lijo Jose Pellissery is the Tarantino of Malayalam, Zakariya is fast becoming the industry's equivalent of Wes Anderson. He is able to infuse the same amount of quirkiness and soul into his characters and has the same uncanny ability to eke out humour from the most mundane of sequences. Halal Love Story does not rise to the levels of his debut hit Sudani from Nigeria but Indrajith, Grace Antony and co. deliver a charming satire that will keep you entertained. While the two leads are adequate in their respective roles as a sparring married couple acting as the lead pair in a made-for-tv movie, it is Sharaf U Deen and Joju George who deliver eye-catching performances as the ever-suffering scriptwriter and the director respectively. Watch out for a brilliant Soubin Shahir cameo that will leave you in splits. Parvathy Thiruvothu's cameo, however, is not at all memorable. Zakariya has taken two subjects dear to Malayali hearts-first with football in Sudani and now cinema with this film, and has managed to dazzle with both. Can't wait to see what he does next. Recommended

Average movie

[rameezwanderlust · 5/10 · 15 October 2020]

Halal love story is a movie where a few movie lovers trying to make one , as they are part of muslim community the movie should be halal( permissible according to Islamic law).

Grace antony and sharafuddin played their roles very finely, dialogues were also good. But the overall movie is an average ,underwhelming. But comparing with other industries of indian movie malayalam is on right direction.