Mohanlal’s Odiyan has cleared the censor with a ‘U’ certificate. It is now set for a worldwide release on December 14. Telugu and Tamil versions of the film will also release on the same day.
The film was given the certificate on December 5. According to reports, the CBFC issued a ‘U’ certificate after asking the film makers to trim a nine-minute scene, to which they agreed. It now has a run time of 2 hours 52 minutes.
Odiyan is said to release in over 3000 screens worldwide, making it the biggest release so far for a Malayalam film. Pre-release sales have begun, and is said to be filling up already in theatres both in India and UAE.
It is the first Malayalam film to be simultaneously released in Tamil and Telugu, and will be dubbed into Hindi and other languages as well.
The film has been written by Harikrishnan and directed by debutant Shrikumar Menon, an ad-film maker. It stars Mohanlal and Manju Warrier in lead roles, along with Prakash Raj, Manoj Joshi and Naren. Prakash Raj’s role is said to be prominent. The last time Mohanlal and Prakash Raj worked together was in 1997, for Mani Ratnam’s Iruvar.
Production for Odiyan began last year, and was shot over 140 days. It is based on the life of Odiyan Manikyan, the last surviving member of the Odiyan tribe, who are said to have abilities to assume animal forms. They are believed to have lived around the Malabar-Palakkad region, and the film’s story is set in Thenkurissi village.
Recommended
Odiyan is produced by Antony Perumbavoor under Aashirvad Cinemas. M Jayachandran is the music composer for sound tracks, Sam CS will compose background score. Shaji Kumar is the cinematographer, and John Kutty is the editor.
The last Malayalam film to create so much buzz was the 2016 Mohanlal-starrer Pulimurugan. It was made on a budget of Rs 25 crore, and became the first Malayalam film to earn over Rs 150 crore. A few months after its release, a Telugu version of the film called Manyam Puli released in 500 screens in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.