Aaro: Manju Warrier is all grace in Ranjith’s ‘puzzling’ short fiction

Manju Warrier, ‘the Aaro’ in the short film, makes a brief yet impactful appearance as the mysterious yet graceful guest, who seems to know everything about the protagonist (Shyamaprasad)

Manju Warrier in Aaro short film

Aaro, the Malayalam short film helmed by Ranjith, begins at a traditional house amid the pitter-patter of a rainy night. The short film, with the tagline Someone, seems to have attached ‘some’ to every aspect of it. The house is located somewhere in Kerala, the middle-aged person who is the protagonist could be some lyricist or writer, though we don't know his name, just like the surprise visitor at his home.

Manju Warrier's Aaro short film

Noted screenwriter-director and also now actor, Ranjith directs Shyamaprasad, another writer-filmmaker who too has now switched to acting, in Aaro. The short film, with story and dialogue by VR Sudheesh, is set in today’s time with smartphones that get calls from private numbers, but the milieu harks back to an earlier era. The round wooden table where our leading man works has Kumaran Asan's Karuna sitting atop a book of astrophysics. Shyamaprasad turns into a middle-aged man, leading a cluttered life among stacks of books, cigarette stubs and unclean utensils, but fumbles when the protagonist is hit with a wave of emotions in a key moment.

Ranjith, who has delivered some mass movies such as Mohanlal’s Ravanaprabhu and poignant films, fiddles with the idea of a man waiting for an inspiration, akin to Balachandran in his other film Kaiyoppu starring Mammootty, who incidentally has backed this 2025 short film. Kaiyoppu too dealt with Balachandran struggling with writer’s block, and when his former lover reconnects with him, he finds the spark to complete his first novel. If Kaiyoppu was rooted in reality with a terror twist, Aaro seems to be an abstract idea that just hangs around before turning into a whiff of imagination.

Manju Warrier, ‘the Aaro’ in the short film, makes an impactful brief appearance as the mysterious yet graceful guest, who seems to know everything about the protagonist. Dressed elegantly and looking very chic in a Kerala sari with a big red bindi and steel bangles, she leaves our writer in a bit of a tizzy as she glides through the house, pointing out the changes from a past they seem to have shared. Manju, who played the renowned poet Kamala Das in the 2018 film Aami, is perfectly cast as the enigmatic visitor. When Manju Warrier is first introduced to us, she looks to be too eager, too lovely, too splendid to be real. Just when you wonder if the actress dialled up the performance more than what was necessary, the third act upsets all that you had construed until then.

At a crisp 21 minutes with just three actors (Azees Nedumangad is the third artiste), Aaro wraps up quickly or rather opens up questions on what’s real. It is similar to the short stories from the 80s and 90s, which gave you some thoughts to chew on but not enough to make you sit up. You are left with more questions as the short fiction, as Ranjith calls it, brings on the credits.

(The Malayalam short film, Aaro, is available on YouTube.)

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