Goat Days: Novel and movie complement each other

Goat Days written by Benyamin and the movie based on that Adujeevitham (The Goat Life) directed by Blessey complement well with each other. There are definitely more details and nuances in the book but at the same time the movie brings both the protagonist’s family life in Kerala and the drudgery of the desert in Saudi Arabia visually more alive.   

One of the best aspects of the book for me was the crisp writing of Benyamin. The life of Najeeb in the desert is narrated in a racy manner making it a very easy read. Even slow readers can finish the book very fast. Najeeb’s struggles with rearing the goats and how he formed a bond is sketched in greater detail here in comparison with the movie.

For example in the novel there is a portion where a goat gives birth to its child right in the hands of Najeeb. Najeeb considers the baby goat as his son and names it Nabeel. Nabeel was the name he considered for his actual child if his wife had given birth to a male. She was pregnant when he left. Now he doesn’t know whom his wife delivered boy or girl. Still he believes it is a boy and proceeds to look after the baby goat as his own offspring.

He pampers the animal a lot. He even allows Nabeel to drink milk from his mother now and then which is a taboo in that place. If the owner of the goats comes to know of it Najeeb will have to face his wrath in the form of lashings and deprivation of food.  

There is also a hugely disturbing portion in the book where Nabeel’s genitals are cut off. In the place Najeeb worked only a few male goats are allowed to have their genitals intact. It might be a universal practice with all goat rearers in the world but Najeeb finds it hard to accept it for his little one.  

He tries his level best to save Nabeel by picking up some other goat for castration. But the Arab, his master, is a shrewd man with a great memory. He loses his patience and gives a tight kick to Najeeb. Najeeb begs the Arab not to cause any harm to that goat but in vain. The heartbreak of Najeeb is palpable.

The movie Aadujeevitham would have been even more engaging if director Blessey had included these scenes. However one area where the movie scores over the book is the Juxtaposition of Nabeel’s past life in Kerala backwaters and his present status of a wretched life. This juxtaposition added a lot to the movie because we get a thorough idea of how happy his earlier life was. In the book we do not see Najeeb remembering his wife so much.

The book also gives more clarity on why preservation of water is considered so important in that desert area. In the movie there is a scene where Prithviraj’s character uses water to clean himself after going to the toilet but his master kicks him for doing it, telling him to use stones instead of water. We feel it is so inhuman.

But while watching the movie we don’t initially understand why the Arab objected for the use of water for such a basic need. Book gives more clarity on this. Similarly we also don’t understand why the goats are taken for a walk every day in that scorching heat in spite of no grassland anywhere nearby. Actually this goat walking is meant to keep the animals active and healthy. If they are lazy their meat doesn’t taste good is something we come to know only after reading the book.   

The escape scenes of Najeeb, Hakim and his co worker Ibrahim Khadiri in the desert come much later in the book unlike the movie where it occupies almost the entire second half. Though this journey of theirs is heartbreaking it felt a little dragged in the movie. The space given to it in the book seemed right because after a point it gets repetitive.

Both the film and the book have their own advantages and disadvantages. Keeping aside the stretched second half in the movie, director Blessey and actor Prithviraj Sukumaran deserve a huge appreciation for a gritty survival drama that makes you think about the plight of so many not so educated men and women who become easy target in those unknown lands.

If no other man or woman is fooled to slavery in this way ever again, the purpose of both the book and the movie will be served. Hope the Governments of both lands take notice. The movie should have come much earlier considering the huge success of the novel (more than 100 reprints in the Malayalam original). Thanks Najeeb, Thanks Benyamin, Thanks Blessey and Thanks Prithviraj Sukumaran.

Aadujeevitham (The Goat Life): A heart wrenching survival drama led by an award winning performance from Prithviraj Sukumaran

An overindulgent second half does test the viewer’s patience but still there is a lot to savour
  • Aadujeevitam
  • Rating 3.5 out of 5
  • Starcast: Prithviraj Sukumran, KR Gokul, Amala Paul, Talib Al Balushi and others
  • Direction and Screenplay: Blessy
  • Based on: Book Aadujeevitam by Benyamin
  • Producers: Blessey, Jimmy Jean Louis and Steve Adams
  • Production Companies: Visual Romance, Jet Media Production and Alta Global Media
  • Music: AR Rahman
  • Genre: Survival drama
  • Running time: 2 hours and 52 minutes

Not so educated men going to gulf countries and working as labourers is a wide spread phenomenon. Their lack of education makes these men easy target and they often end up being slaves. Director Blessy has taken one such story from the novel Goat Days written by Benyamin. Survival dramas when done well make for gripping cinema and Aadujeevitham (The Goat Life) is a good example of that. It makes you feel strongly for the protagonist Najeeb and want him to come out safe.

Najeeb (Prithviraj Sukumaran) is a man living happily with his wife Sainu (a charming Amala Paul) when the movie starts. He is from Kerala. In order to earn more money and give a better life to his family Najeeb decides to go to the gulf with his friend Hakim (K R Gokul). Upon reaching Saudi Arabia they find themselves in a clueless situation without knowing who their boss is.

Suddenly a local Arab approaches them. Najeeb and Hakim think that this Arab is their boss. Najeeb’s dreams of a better future come crashing down when he is dropped off in the middle of a desert to look after goats and camels.  Najeeb knows only Malayalam but that is of no use to him there. He struggles to communicate with the owner of that place known as Kafeel.

He eventually becomes a goat herder with days turning into weeks, months and even years. Hope comes in the form of another immigrant an African by name Ibraham Khadiri (Jimmy Jean Lousis). Ibraham Khadiri promises to help Najeeb and Hakim to escape. The rest of the story is about the various hardships that they face and how Najeeb finally manages to get out of the desert and is able to reconnect with his family.

At audio launch with AR Rehman

A strong aspect of Aadujeevitham is how Blessy has presented the life of Najeeb in detail without any hurry. The flashback portions of Najeeb’s happy life in Kerala and his present situation has been well juxtaposed. Najeeb’s scenes with his wife give much needed relief in an otherwise heavy drama, the transformation of Najeeb from a healthy man swimming with abandon in the Kerala backwaters to someone who becomes very thin and unkempt gives Goosebumps to the viewers. A scene which deserves a particular mention here is the one when Najeeb checks himself in the mirror of a van after a long time and is astonished on how much his body has changed.

Najeeb’s struggles in rearing the goats and how he develops a bond with them later has also been well depicted, there is a wonderful scene in the post interval portion where Najeeb breaks down while bidding goodbye to the goats and the camels. It is a heart touching scene.

Sunil K’s cinematography is another big highlight of Aadujeevitham. He does a splendid job in capturing both the beautiful back waters of Kerala and also the vast desert where Najeeb and Co undergo many hardships. His cinematography particularly stands out in the scenes of sand storm.

A.R Rahman’s songs and the background score also add much to the film. The BGM is a mixture of Arabic, Indian, Islamic etc. The songs come at the right juncture whether it is the romantic one with Amala Paul or the most intense theme song.

What pulls down Aadujeevitham though are the dragged post interval portions. The various hardships that Najeeb faces in going back home needed more trimming. While it is understandable that Blessy wants the viewers to empathise with the plight of Najeeb but a certain boredom creeps in making the audiences impatient. The character of Ibrahim is a little vague. We don’t understand why he is not tired, not thirsty like the other two.

Prithviraj, a superlative performance, with Amala Paul

A lot has been already said about Prithviraj Sukumaran’s performance and how he has gotten into the skin of the character. It is definitely a life changing performance for the actor. His physical transformation into a thin and unkempt man is on par with the best of international actors like Tom Hanks.

K R Gokul is another actor who stands out with his heart touching portrayal. Talib as Kafeel is successful in making the audiences hate him. Amala Paul does not have any heavy lifting but still she made her presence amply felt.