A couple of hours ago, Nivin Pauly tweeted the first-look poster of Kayamkulam Kochunni, a period drama based on the famed 19th century Robin Hoodian thief who lived in what is now central Kerala. And it looks spot on.
The first look of #KayamkulamKochunni is here! Thank you for the love & support! 😊@Mohanlal | #RosshanAndrrews | #GokulamGopalan
| #BobbySanjay | #BabuAntony | #GopiSunder | #BinodPradhan | #SreekarPrasad | #AntoJoseph | #SunnyWayne | @PriyaAnand pic.twitter.com/6cF4uhkoL8— Nivin Pauly (@NivinOfficial) July 6, 2018
A Rosshan Andrrews film, Kayamkulam Kochunni doesn’t have a release date yet, but if you know your folklore, or a little history, you’ll be counting days till the film is out what with Mohanlal’s extended cameo appearance as thief Ithikkara Pakki. Pauly’s performance in another period drama, Sakhavu, a film about an ageing communist in the high ranges of Kerala, established him as an artiste capable of moving between characters and personas effortlessly, even as it brought him out of his usual image of college sweetheart or a macho-thug-romantic.
This is the second time Kayamkulam Kochunni has caught the fancy of filmmakers, the first film being a 1966 release. Set in the latter half of 1800s Kerala, the story is about a heroic outlaw who robbed the rich to feed the poor, and fought against the caste system. Andrrews began shooting in Udupi late last year, and saw a cast change in Amala Paul being replaced by Priya Anand as the leading lady. Mohanlal was roped in later, suddenly taking the film one notch up.
Andrrews’ strength is his story telling, as you can tell right from his debut with another Mohanlal-starrer Udayananu Tharam and going on to Manju Warrier-starrer (that was remade in several languages) How Old Are You. Working on the Andrrews team, as usual, are his buddies and writer duo Bobby-Sanjay. The same team is due to start on a Kamal Haasan untitled project later this year. Pauly, on the other hand, awaits Geethu Mohandas’s bilingual film Moothon.
Watch this space for more, and meanwhile take a look at Pauly once again, in his handlebar moustache as the famed brigand.
