Cadaver, the upcoming Tamil film starring actor Amala Paul in the lead role, is a forensic crime thriller, the director of the film Anoop S Panicker told Silverscreen India.
The film is bankrolled by the actor’s Amala Paul Productions banner and marks her debut as a producer. Written by Abhilash Pillai, it also marks the directorial debut of Panicker.
Speaking about the film, Panicker said, “There was a forensic surgeon by the name Dr B Umadattan, who wrote a book called Oru Police Surgeonte Ormakkurippukal. The script is inspired from this book, but it is a fictional tale. Umadattan helped us by sharing some more of his real-life experiences as well.” Panicker and Pillai spoke to the surgeon before his passing in 2019.
“We also visited Trivandrum Medical College and observed the post-mortem of dead bodies to learn how surgeons work, their body language, and so on. Many of the forensic surgeons told us that dead bodies [figuratively] speak to them,” the director added.
The first look motion poster of the film was released by Akshay Kumar recently. It shows Amala eating in a mortuary filled with cadavers. Revealing the inspiration for this, Panicker said, “Abhilash Pillai’s brother died by suicide in 2010. When he went to collect his body at the mortuary, he caught sight of a surgeon eating food amid the dead bodies. This image inspired the first look and in fact, it was what gave birth to Cadaver.” The director added that film is mostly set in a mortuary.
Panicker and Pillai decided to collaborate on the project after a mutual friend introduced them to each other. “About four years ago, we had several story threads in mind, but one day, he called me at about 11.30 pm and narrated this story,” the filmmaker said.
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After finishing the script, the duo met many actors before Amala picked up the project. “At one point, we thought that Amala would be apt for the character and contacted her. After narrating the story to her over some 2.5 hours, she agreed to star in the film and decided to produce it as well,” Panicker added.
Besides Amala, the cast includes Athulya Ravi, Harish Uthaman, Riythvika, Adith Arun, and Munishkanth. While Harish plays a police official, Munishkanth essays his assistant. Adith and Athulya star as a couple hailing from a village.
The film went on floors on March 2019 and has been shot by cinematographer Aravinnd Singh. Locations included Chennai and Kerala. San Lokesh is the editor of Cadaver, which is currently in the final stages of post-production. The film has music by Ranjin Raj and it features three songs.
The makers of Cadaver are aiming for a theatrical release in December.