Sarkeet movie review: A light-hearted drama on ADHD, with a lot of untapped potential

The Hindu

08-05-2025

Sarkeet (Malayalam)
Starring: Asif Ali, Divya Prabha, Deepak Parambol, Orhan
Direction: Thamar K.V.
Storyline: A jobless stranger unexpectedly walks into the life of a couple struggling to manage their child with ADHD.
Runtime: 125 minutes
At the core of Thamar K.V.'s sophomore film Sarkeet is a literally sticky affair that pushes the limits of believability. But, it is to the credit of the makers and the actors involved that one goes along willingly with this rather unbelievable situation which propels the story forward. Thamar, going by the two movies he has made till now, appears to be adept at pulling off such uncommon occurrences in a light, engaging manner.
For about half of its runtime, Sarkeet moves along two parallel tracks, one dealing with a couple who are struggling to manage their child with a severe case of Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and another on the travails of a young Malayali who has landed up in a West Asian country in search of a job.
Their child Jeppu's (Orhan) unpredictable, hyperactive behaviour takes its toll on Stephy and Balu (Divya Prabha and Deepak Parambol), whose relationship is tested at times, with past rancour resurfacing. When their world meets unexpectedly with that of jobless Ameer (Asif Ali), it would expectedly change all their lives. Although one is not sure whether ADHD will manifest in the ways as portrayed in the film, Sarkeet is important in that it sheds some light on conditions that are often dismissed as just unruly behaviour. The underlying strain on the troubled childhood of another character gives the drama an added heft.
Thamar debuted with 1001 Nunakal (1001 Lies) that sustained itself on the tension that builds up amid a group of friends who play a game during a get-together. In that film, one could sense the filmmaker treading a little too carefully without allowing the tricky situation that he conjured up to not get out of hand. The same risk averse approach and the reluctance to dig deeper are evident in Sarkeet where the principal players all get out a little too easily from a not so easy situation. This approach perhaps led to the film hitting a little below than it could have, with the kind of possibilities provided by the subjects it tackled.
Yet, the film does have a few emotionally high moments that hit the right notes, although the film in the end fails to leave a lasting impact due to the rather light treatment.
Sarkeet works mainly because of the performances, most notably that of young Orhan as the hard-to-handle Jeppu. It is a role that could easily have been portrayed in an over-the-top manner, but Orhan delivers just the required nuances for the character's condition. Asif Ali aces it in his familiar turf where he is required to portray the emotional upheavals of a struggling man caught in a strange situation. Divya Prabha and Deepak Parambol also pitch in with notable turns.
Sarkeet is a light-hearted drama about weighty issues, which ends up with a lot of untapped potential.
Sarkeet is currently running in cinemas.