Made in Korea Film directed by Ra.Karthik is a travelogue and story of self discovery and a dash of drama with Priyanka Arul Mohan stealing the show. It is an easy watch and will connect with K drama lovers despite being predictable
By Rajeshwari Kalyanam
The ancient story of Sembavalam, a Pandya princess from Kanyakumari, who lived on this land 2000 years ago, and had travelled to South Korea by sea to marry a Korean king is part of folklore with mentions in ancient books. There is also her memorial in South Korea that stands as proof of the ancient bond between Tamil Nadu and South Korea – This story is narrated by Semba (Priyanka Arul Mohan). And that’s how this simple breezy story of Ra. Karthik’s film Made in Korea begins.
Semba harbours a desire to visit South Korea – a strange desire to have for a girl from a remote hilly village in Tamil Nadu. But she is obsessed and the obsession only grows with age. On the other hand her father who runs a small eatery hopes to see his daughter run it and develop it into a big restaurant when she grows up.
What looks like a far fetched idea becomes reality thanks to fate. She ends up in the glitzy beautiful city Seoul. But she is in a place in her life where she can’t fully enjoy being in her favourite city.
The rest of the story is about how Semba who cannot even speak proper Korean fares in Seoul, and her new found friendships and new beginnings.
K dramas, K pop, Korean food and love for Korea has been on a rise past few years. On Netflix itself the K dramas do as well as Indian love stories, at times more. Riding on the K trend Ra. Karthik’s Made in Korea ticks all right boxes – an easy breezy film with friendships, emotions, hearty moments, and mostly good people making the world a friendly place. That it is for most part made in Korea as the title suggests; the country which is indeed a dream destination for many Indian youngsters adds some brownie points. The cast of Made in Korea includes Korean actor Park Hye-jin, and Si-hun Baek, Ha-Ram Jo and Jae-hyeon Jang in supporting roles. For most part the film offers great sights and culture of Seoul for audience to soak in. The rest of the film captures the hilly terrains on the Tamil Nadu village which is stunningly captured by the cinematographer Prasanna Kumar.
Unlike Ra.Karthik’s earlier film Nitham Ori Vaanam, which was layered – Made in Korea is one straight forward film like most K dramas with some fun and emotions thrown in.
And in the lines of Emily in Paris kind of shows, this is a peek into Seoul, the city that many Indian youngsters are indeed obsessed with.
You can even get to see the tomb of Sembavalam – known by the name Heo Hwang Ok in South Korea about whom a Buddhist monk Samguk Yusa wrote about in 13th Century. You see that at her memorial is a stone sculpture of Twin Fish – the Symbol you saw on the flag of the Pandyan Kingdom. Then there are seven stones placed on each other, a tradition followed even today in South India.
The movie Made in Korea streaming on Netflix primarily gives an interesting peek into this common history and the modern face of South Korea (Seoul). Priyanka Arul Mohan gets a dream role as she is the hero of the film taking it forward amazingly well displaying a range of emotions with ease. The music isn’t memorable but pleasant enough with Hesham, Simon and Dharan composing the songs and background score.
All you missed was some depth in story telling and romance; but not all movies need to be heavily laden with complexities. Watch Made in Korea with some popcorn in hand as you sit back at the end of a busy day and relax over some self indulgence. Even Semba’s Korean experience is about prioritising self indulgence.
Made in Korea Review
Rating: 2.5/5
