Kammattam Review
Director: Shan Thulasi
Date Created: 2025-09-04 17:34
3.5
Kammattam Review: Directed by Shan Thulasi, this Zee5 Malayalam series (കമ്മട്ടം) boasts a great cast that includes Sudev Nair, Jeo Baby, Viviya Santh, Ajai Vasudev, Jinse Baskar and others. There are six episodes for the show, each of which is approximately 30–40 minutes, and the plot is about the mysterious death of a man named Samuel Umman. What seems like a normal car accident soon generates suspicion, and Antonio George, an inspector, begins to inquire. In his quest for the truth, Antonio not only discovers the truth behind Samuel’s death but also an enormously greater conspiracy and betrayal.
Kammattam Review
There is something that hit me personally with the series Kammattam immediately when it plunges straight into the action. Right from the first episode itself, the show has no hesitation in showing the crime, the suspects, and the probable motives. This is what works in grabbing one’s attention, but it also made me think that the series was going too fast without giving me any space to breathe.
Rather than engaging in the slow build-up with the anticipation, sometimes it cuts between scenes abruptly as if it cannot wait for the next turn. To those who like plot-driven, quick-moving series, this will be thrilling. To me, however, I needed some points where the story would put on the brakes, using the foot so that I could connect more with the characters.
What I enjoyed the most about the Zee5 series Kammattam was how the suspense was maintained till the end. There is always an after-hook at the end of an episode that compels you to move on to the next one immediately. There are probing investigations across many of the possible suspects, such as Samuel’s clerk, Francis, his son Ebin, and various others who are associated with a cooperative bank from which Samuel had taken a loan.
What I was most intrigued by regarding the plot involving the cooperative bank was that it reflects reality by using the money-lending system within the Indian state of Kerala, and I wished that this scenario could have been investigated further. We were never allowed to experience the full depth of the rot; the scenes were trying, but instead were treated like abrupt little info-dumps.
But the series succeeds in one thing: it never lets you forget that every individual in this world is hiding something. This sense of distrust is what makes crime dramas interesting, and that is where Kammattam gets quite reasonably good at.
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Sudev Nair as Inspector Antonio is the natural backbone of the crime thriller Kammattam. We observe him as a policeman who does not fit into the ‘drama for drama’s sake’ category. While I enjoyed his sharp screen presence, I also felt his characterisation was incomplete. Apart from the positive points about being a serious and effective cop, nothing much is known about his inner personality, so he appears quite one-dimensional, time-wise.
Jeo Baby as Samuel, who is on screen for a minimal time, but leaves his mark, where the character’s background propels the whole narrative. There are casual performances by the supporting actors, including Jinse Baskar and Viviya Santh. Cast acts together to give the surroundings a realistic feel, but once again, I felt the series did not rest long enough to mould them. All the rest seemed to be on screen for the most part to move the story along.
The best strength and weakness of the Malayalam series Kammattam is its pace. On the positive side, it ensures that the audience is never bored. From clue to clue, from suspect to suspect, and finally the last reveal, all within six episodes. On the other hand, the fast pace does not allow for atmosphere or emotional tension. There were moments I felt I was not seeing human beings with real emotions, but reading the case file. The dialogues also play a part in this, as the conversations sometimes read simply like descriptions and not normal discussions.
The Kammattam series addresses so many contemporary themes, like how even holy institutions get corrupted by greed, how friendships are always covered with hidden conditions, and how human beings are always caught in master-servant power games. These are themes that run deep and would have made the show richer if they were seeded gradually through the story. My gripe is that because the series is always in such a rush to the next turn, these themes stay raw. I wanted the producers to be less hasty so these ideas could have evolved over the duration naturally.
The greatest missed opportunity was that Shan Thulasi’s Kammattam could have been something other than the typical crime mystery. If it had been better written and had better atmosphere, it would have been among the greatest thriller series in Malayalam. It is, however, padded and cut short to six episodes. That format keeps it thrilling in fleeting moments, but doesn’t provide you with enough substance.
Zee5 Kammattam Review: Summing Up
The series Kammattam on Zee5 is a gripping crime thriller that will keep you with its plot and pace, but doesn’t hang around the emotional side. You will find yourself watching it over the weekend, especially if police procedurals are your genre or you want to see tight turns of events. If, however, you are waiting for the thriller that will stick with you long after the series has concluded, you might not receive it with this. On a personal level, the suspense kept me excited, but I would have preferred the narration to last long enough for me to create the characters with whom I could really connect.
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