Magical realism as a genre has been the object of fascination for many filmmakers over the years, starting with the likes of Italian auteur Federico Fellini. And just a second into Kaiyum Kalavum, it becomes apparent that filmmaker Rohit Nandakumar (aka Roju) too has been bitten by the surrealist bug. The seven-episode series is an admirable attempt, for not just staying true to the genre, but for doing so with a refreshing take on Tamil sensibilities.
The series is clear about what it is as early as its introductory sequence — a world that operates on an illogical plane. We open with a historical tale about a king who wants to legitimise her daughter’s place in the kingdom. And what better way to educate his subjects than a play about egalitarianism? So, a theatre troupe of eccentric characters is lined up for the big day. But when its lead characters fall in love and ruin the play in an act of passion, the king dismisses them with a curse. One is cursed with an itch to destroy desires, and another with bad luck. And the only way they can be rid of the curse is by reuniting in an unlikely circumstance. Now, what if this star-crossed romance was contemporised? Enter a nameless boy (Rohit Nandakumar) and Anbu (Sanchana Natarajan), two obsessive thieves who have been dealt a bad hand in life.