While movies with big starcasts and huge hype have failed to deliver quality entertainment so far this year, Kutty comes out of nowhere to capture our hearts. It is a movie that makes us laugh, cry and most importantly, think, and stays with us long after the end credits have rolled. Without turning preachy, it focusses on the helplessness of children forced into labor through the plight of one such 10 year old girl who travels from her village to the city. It never sugarcoats the issue and without being overtly sentimental or violent, ends in a way that churns our stomachs.

Kannamma(Baby Shwetha) is drafted as the domestic help in the house of a family with two working parents Ranga(Ramesh Arvind) and Rohini(Kausalya). Pampered by her father Pavadai(Nasser) who nurtured dreams of sending her to school, Kannamma has been forced to take up this job after her father died in an accident. Kannamma is cared for well by Ranga and Rohini and inspite of being disliked by their son Vicky(Master Suraj), leads a happy life. But the arrival of Ranga's mother(M.N.Rajam), who is of the opinion that servants are beneath her and deserve to be treated like slaves, changes Kannama's life.

Janaki Vishwanathan has ported the simple story(Sivasankari) to the big screen with a touch that belies her inexperience behind the camera. It is fascinating that Kannamma's life in the city begins and ends with two train rides - rides she takes with her heart filled with hopes and dreams of a life better than the one she is leading. When she arrives in the city, we share her happiness as her dreams come true and cry with her as they are shattered by the arrival of M.N.Rajam. And our heart cries out for her as she takes the ride out of the city, her face beaming. With Ilaiyaraja's short song in the background, the ending has a forceful impact and it is safe to say that it can never be forgotten by those seeing the movie.

The movie touches upon several ills in society but does so in a manner that makes sure that the message stays with us. There are sharp dialogs and clever scenes but no long, preachy sermonizing that turns the movie into a documentary. Issues like illiteracy, poverty and the consequent child labor and child abuse are always in the background and some very effective scenes bring them to the fore at the right times. The scene where a young boy serves tea to a teacher who has just finished talking about the ineffectiveness of the laws that ban child labor is a masterful stroke that conveys the hypocricy of people who "preach but dont practise". The scene where M.N.Rajam and her grandson feed the dog after dismissing Kannamma's hunger is another scene that is sharply etched.

The touch of reality pervading the entire movie is the biggest reason the movie has such a big impact. Ramesh Arvind and Kausalya portray a convincing upper middle class couple with casual comments about credit cards and cinema striking a familiar chord. Nasser embodies every affectionate father who wants to give his daughter the best while his wife brings out the frustration of someone struggling to make ends meet. A short segment about another servant maid is equally sad and makes one more point about the dangers of poverty and illiteracy while the director also manages to suggest a way of eradicating illiteracy through Vivek's character. The character of M.N.Rajam seems slightly exaggerated at times but that is absolutely necessary to drive home the point about the ill-treatment of Kannamma.

With the entire movie revolving around a 10-year old girl, Baby Shwetha carries the movie on her frail shoulders with aplomb. She is never bitten by the overacting bug that bites most child performers and shines in the tough role. Whether holding on to the sides of the elevator in fear during her first trip in it, shyly showing off her new dress or shivering in fear at M.N.Rajam's threats, Shwetha is superb, with her eyes mirroring her every emotion convincingly. Her charming smile has the ability to lift the spirits of a churl while her cries tug at our heartstrings. Her narration of the letter to write to her mom would melt even the hardest heart.

There are no missteps in the performance of the rest of the cast. Ramesh Arvind and Kausalya are convincing as the couple not sure as to whether they are doing the best for the little girl. His outburst at his mother is very convincingly done. Nasser is superb as the affectionate father while M.N.Rajam earns our anger and revulsion with her attitude. Vivek gets the chance for a few wisecracks in his own style but also reveals his histrionic ability. Master Suraj is convincing as the young boy with an attitude. Ilaiyaraja's background score blends in with every scene, with some subtle changes in tempo reflecting the moods of the movie. The song Shwetha sings after Ramesh Arvind praises her in her new dress is chirpy and catchy. Thangar Bachan's camera captures both the greenery of the village and the concrete jungle of the city with elan.

Contrary to its name, Kutti stands tall like a giant among recent movies.