Odiyan, starring Mohanlal in the title role, is undoubtedly one of the most expected Malayalam films of the year. The shooting of this film was wrapped up some months ago and it is currently in the post-production mode with the makers planning to release it on October 10 this year.
While the post-production work is happening at a good pace, the pre-release business for the magnum opus has begun too. According to reports from trade sources, the Hindi dubbing and satellite rights for Odiyan have been sold for a whopping Rs 3.25 crore, which is the highest for any Malayalam movie till date. The dubbing rights alone fetched its makers Rs 2.35 crore, say sources. Incidentally, the earlier records were held by the Mohanlal starrer Villain, which fetched Rs 3 crore, and Mammootty’s Masterpiece, which got Rs 1.25 crore.
Odiyan’s teaser has created a positive buzz and we hear that the 12-min long climax sequence took 25 days to finish filming. Seen in a much younger, toned avatar, Mohanlal as Odiyan had raised a lot of scepticism as to whether the actor would be able to pull off the look. It has been reported that Mohanlal will be seen in different looks in Odiyan between the ages of 30 and 65. Apparently, the actor worked out for over eight hours every day to achieve the much younger look.
Antony Perumbavoor is producing Odiyan under his banner Aashirvad Cinemas on a huge budget. Manju Warrier plays the woman lead in this film and the rest of the star cast includes Innocent, Siddique, Manoj Joshi, Nandhu, Narain, Kailash, Sreejaya Nair, Sana Althaf and Appani Sarath. Scripted by National Award winning writer K Hari Krishnan, the film is being directed by VA Shrikumar Menon, an accomplished ad filmmaker who will be making his directorial debut in the film industry.
Odiyan is touted to be a fantasy thriller based on the lives of the Odiyans. It requires a lot of computer graphics and Bollywood actor Ajay Devgn’s NY VFXWAALA is handling the film’s VFX.
(Content provided by Digital Native)