Halal love story is zakariya's 2nd directorial venture after sudani from Nigeria which is one of my personal favorite films. When, I heard that its releasing in ott, I was a bit sad because i wished it was released in theatres.
The plot is based on a bunch of passionate filmmakers from malabar who want to make a telefilm for their community. Rest of the film are the events following the making. The story is very thin, but its the direction which keeps the movie forward which is as realistic as the director's previous film. The next area it shines are the performances. The best performer was grace antony whose potential must be used in future. Indrajith as usual gives a sincere performance, but couldn't perfect the malabar slang. Joju shines in many portions. From all the films i have seen, this is the first time I am seeing sharafudeen in a gentleman kind of role. Parvathy's cameo was okay but soubin's cameo was awesome. The cinematography is another asset.
But the storyline is too simple which will disappoint many who are expecting another sudani from Nigeria. And in entertainment level, this one is neither funny nor emotional, it stays somewhere in the middle.
On the whole, realistic filmmaking and artist performances save halal love story. I personally liked, but don't watch it with too many expectations.