Sundari Gardens, the upcoming Malayalam film starring actors Aparna Balamurali and Neeraj Madhav in the lead roles, will be a romantic musical, says director Charlie Davis.
Written and directed by the debutant filmmaker, Sundari Gardens is produced by Salim Ahamed, the renowned Malayalam director and producer, who has made films like the National Award-winning Adaminte Makan Abu. Kabeer Kottaram and Razak Ahamed serve as co-producers.
Speaking to Silverscreen India, director Charlie terms Sundari Gardens a ‘breezy romcom’. “The film revolves around a love story and it will be an out-and-out musical. There are more than five songs. Alphons Joseph, who sang Aaromale (from the 2009 Tamil film Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa), has composed the music. Sundari Gardens will be a feel-good experience for the audience as it is a bundle of happiness and love,” he says.
The film’s first-look poster was recently released by the artists and makers through their social media handles.
On how the project happened, Charlie says he pitched this story to Neeraj and Aparna during December 2020 and both actors liked the script. “Neeraj referred me to the producer, who also liked the script and agreed to back the film. I believe the script is the unique selling point of this film,” adds the director, who notes that he invested around three years in writing Sundari Gardens.
It may be noted that actor Neeraj, in an earlier conversation with Silverscreen India in June, had revealed that he would be collaborating with a debutant director named Charlie for an untitled film produced by director Salim Ahmed.
The shooting of Sundari Gardens has already been completed. The film was shot in two schedules this year. The first schedule took place in July-August, while the second happened in September. “We’ve shot in parts of Kottayam, such as Pala, Kanjirapally and Erattupetta,” adds the filmmaker, who has previously assisted prominent filmmakers like TK Rajeev Kumar and Ranjan Pramod.
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Sundari Gardens also stars Binu Pappu, Jude Anthany Joseph, and Vijayragavan, as well as a handful of artists from Karikku (the digital media platform).
The film’s technical crew includes cinematographer Swaroop Philp, who has handled the camera for films like Aravindante Adhithikal and Kunjeldho; costume designer Divya George, who recently worked on Hridayam; and editor Sajith Unnikrishnan.
Charlie reveals that the film is currently in the post-production stage and the team is hoping to release it by next year.
Meanwhile, actor Neeraj, who was last seen in the Hindi anthology Feels Like Ishq, has several other projects in hand, including Ka, Ennile Villain, and Pathira Kurubana.