Putting an end to rumours that had been doing the rounds for days, legendary filmmaker Adoor Gopalakrishnan has finally confirmed that his next directorial venture will be with Malayalam megastar Mammootty, marking their first collaboration in over three decades. For the past few days, speculation had been rife that the two were planning to join forces again, with Mammootty himself taking on the role of producer. Now, Adoor has provided an update regarding the project, sending excitement through the roof.
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Revealing that the movie will be bankrolled by the actor’s home production company, Mammootty Kampany, Adoor told Manorama News, “Mammootty himself will play the lead role. The casting for the remaining characters is currently underway. As the scripting was going on, only Mammootty’s face came to my mind for the central character. I felt that he would be the perfect person for the role. This will be the fourth time he plays the male lead in one of my films. I’ve never worked with any other lead actor that many times.”
Adoor Gopalakrishnan, however, refrained from revealing more details about the film.
One of the most celebrated actor-director duos in the history of Malayalam cinema, Mammoottty and Adoor Gopalakrishnan have consistently produced films that are often regarded among the finest the industry has ever seen. A legendary filmmaker who bagged the National Film Award for Best Direction for his debut venture, Swayamvaram (1972), Adoor joined forces with Mammootty for the first time in 1987 in Anantaram.
Mammootty with Adoor Gopalakrishnan during an award ceremony. Actors Nana Patekar and Manorama can also be seen in the picture. (Express archive photo)
Subsequently, they collaborated on two more films — Mathilukal (1990) and Vidheyan (1993). While Anantaram and Mathilukal earned Adoor the National Film Award for Best Direction, among other honours, Mathilukal and Vidheyan helped Mammootty secure his second and third National Film Awards for Best Actor, respectively.
The upcoming Mammootty project also marks Adoor Gopalakrishnan’s first feature film in almost a decade since Pinneyum (2016), which starred Dileep and Kavya Madhavan in the lead roles.
