IFFK; 12 films in Malayalam Cinema Now section

News Desk

13 November 2019 03:43 PM

12 films will be screened at the 24th Kerala International Film Festival Malayalam Cinema Now section. Santhosh Mandoor's 'Pani', Anuraj Manohar's 'Ishq-not A Love Story', Madhu C Narayanan's 'Kumbalangi Nights', Silencer directed by Priyanandanan, Dr.Biju's Veyil Marangal,  Salim Ahmed's 'And The Oscar Goes To', Manu Ashok's Uyare, Manoj Kana's Kenjira and Khalid Rahman’s Unda

Pani / Fever

First directorial venture of Santhosh Mandoor with his expertise in short films and documentary films. The film tells the story of Raghavan, who came to Madurai from Tamil Nadu with his wife Janaki at an early age. The film is based on some real incidents of 'mercy killing' and its abuse that is still seen in many parts of Tamil Nadu. The film has been screened at national and international festivals such as International Indian Film Festival - Toronto, CBEU International Film Festival, International Moving Film Festival, and Diorama International Film Festival - New Delhi. Madhu Ambatt is the cinematographer. Santosh Mandoor is the scriptwriter. The film was produced by Sauda Sharif and Aamir Sharif. MR Gopakumar and Roslyn play the lead roles.

Ishq -not A Love Story

'Ishq - Not a Love Story' is a box office hit in Malayalam cinema. Directed by Anurag Manohar, the film stars Shane Nigam, Ann Sheetal, and Shine Tom Chacko. The film discusses some of the moral interventions in the lives of Sachi and Vasudha and their aftermath. The film is produced by Suresh R Mehta, AV Anoop and CV Sarathi under the banner of AVA Productions.

Kumbalangi Nights

Another box office hit in the Malayalam film industry. Kumbalangi Nights is a Malayalam film produced by Dileesh Pothen, Shyam Pushkaran, Fahad Fazil and Nazriya Naseem. It is the first film to be directed by Madhu C Narayanan. The film stars Shane Nigam, Soubin Shahir, Fahad Fazil, Sreenath Bhasi and Mathew Thomas. Two houses in Kumbalangi, Kochi, are central to the story. Shammi is married to his wife, his wife’s sister, Babymol in one house. In another house, the four siblings - Saji, Frankie, Bobby, and Bonnie. The story revolves around these people when life partners came to these four siblings' life. The cinematography is by Shyju Khalid.

The silencer

Priyandananan's "Silencer" is a sincere attempt to understand the lives of people of old age. Although there has been a great deal of effort on this, at different times, the "silencer" stands apart from them. The film is a glimpse into the socio-political climate in which the elderly live. The screenplay is by PN Gopikrishnan. The film was produced by Abdul Nasser Karuppuram at his house.

Veyil Mranagal / Trees Under The Sun

First Malayalam film to win the award at the Shanghai Film Festival. 'Veil Mrangal' directed by Dr.Biju. Dalit family living on an island in Kerala, losing their home in the floods and then working as guardians of an apple orchard in Himachal Pradesh, expose the caste discrimination they face in both places. Apart from the Shanghai Film Festival, he has exhibited at Singapore South Asian Film Festival, Asia Pacific Screen Awards, Jogja Netpak Asian Film Festival, and Kolkata International Film Festival. She won the Best Actor Award at the Singapore South Asian Film Festival. Indrans plays the main character. Baby Mathew has produced the movie with Dr.Biju himself.

Virus

The virus is a film directed by Aashiq Abu. The film is written by Mohsin Parari, Sharafu and Suhas in the wake of the Nipah virus outbreak in Kerala in 2018. Kunchacko Boban, Asif Ali, Tovino Thomas, Rehman, Indrajith Sukumaran, Soubin Zahir, Sreenath Bhasi, Dileesh Pothen, Parvathy, Rima Kallingal, Ramya Nambeesan and Revathi have played the central characters in the film. The makers of the film are Ashik Abu and Rima Kallingal.

Raudram 2018 / Wrath 2018

The film is based on real events. 2018 was the worst flood in the history of Kerala. Raudram tells the story of an elderly couple trapped inside a house during a flood. As the water rises to almost the entire height of the building, they are confined to a very small space for days without food and other basic amenities. Jayaraj is the scriptwriter and director. The film was produced by Balachandran K. Renji Panicker and KPAC Leela done the leade roles.

Oru Njyarazcha / A Sunday

, Oru Njyarazcha is a story about two women, Suja and Sujatha, from an upper-middle-class family in Kerala scripted and directed by Shyamaprasad. The film deals with some of the things that they have lost all their lives. A film like this is very up-to-date when the film talks about the complexities of today's contemporary situation. The film is produced by Sarath Chandran Nair.

And The Oscar Goes To

 And The Oscar Goes To is a Malayalam movie directed by Salim Ahamed starring Tovino Thomas, Srinivasan, Siddique and Anu Sithara. The film’s music was composed by Bijibal. The film's theme is related to the director's experiences with making his first film, Adaminte Makan Abu. The soundtrack is composed by Oscar winner Resul Pookutty. The film won Best Actor, Best Director, Best Cinema and Best Supporting Actress at Alberta's Indian Film Festival. The film is produced by Salim Ahmed himself.

Uyare / Rise 

Height

The film is the directorial debut of Manu Asokan, scripted by Bobby and Sanjay. The film stars Parvathy, Asif Ali and Tovino Thomas. The film is about the life of female pilot Pallavi Raveendran, who survived the acid attack on the face. The film has been screened at the Indiana International Film Festival of Boston and the Global Film Festival - Siliguri and Washington DC South Asian Film Festival.

KENJIRA

The film director and theatre activist Manoj Kana, after 20 years’ theatre activism among the tribals painted his valuable experience on a vast platform that gave rise to the film, Kenjira. It is the ‘Paniya’ tribe, an all-time victim of brutal exploitation who appears on the screen to manifest their own ordeal. The story progresses through the life of Kenjira, a Paniyan girl studying in the ninth standard. In the fight against her dampening hunger, she goes through the various incidents.  The film was shown at IFFI. The film is written and produced by Manoj Kana.

Unda

The film is directed by Khalid Rehman with Mammootty as the lead. Harshad P. K and Khalid Rahman have penned the script. The film tells the story of nine Kerala policemen who were sent from Maoist areas of Chattisgarh for the parliamentary election duties. Sub-Inspector C.P. Manikandan is the head of this group. The film is produced by Krishnan Sethukumar.