The duo look so in love as they lip-sync to a song, wearing matching costumes and dreamily looking into each other's eyes. The camera is mounted on a jimmy jib crane and the unexpected drizzle only adds to the whole ‘dream' effect.
This song sequence is being shot at a picturesque spot on the Alappuzha-Changanacherry road. It's the day's location for debutant director Thomson's ‘Karyasthan,' with Dileep and newcomer Akhila Sasidharan in the lead.
The main location for the film is Ottappalam and the crew have shifted to the present location for three days to shoot the song. A huge crowd is in attendance as the camera follows the lead pair from various angles.
“The story is essentially about two wealthy joint families: Puthezhathu and Kizhakkedathu. They used to share a good rapport but due to a fall-out they are now at odds with each other. Sankaran Nair, essayed by G. K. Pillai, heads Puthezhathu family while Krishna Warrier, essayed by Madhu, is the karanavar (head) of Kizhakkedathu,” says Thomson, who was an assistant to several Malayalam directors before directing this film.
It has been scripted by Siby K. Thomas and Udayakrishna, who are still basking in the success of ‘Pokkiri Raja.'
The story of the two families is unveiled through Krishnanunni (Dileep), who joins Puthezhathu as the karyasthan (manager and caretaker). He tries to bring the two families together and the incidents happening from then on take the story ahead.
Experience counts
Krishnanunni is pleasant in nature but not too educated. He believes that it is practical experiences that are more important in life than formal education. Suraj Venjarammood plays his friend, while Salim Kumar is the karyasthan of the Kizhakkedathu family. The film has a song, which features quite a number of singers and popular Malayalam serial artistes too.
Akhila Sasidharan, who was the runner-up in a reality dance show and who later became popular as the host of a music reality show, plays the heroine.
Her character is called Sreebala and she belongs to the Puthezhathu family.
“I always wanted to become an actor and this role seemed to be perfect for me. My character is a modern, educated girl, who has no qualms about speaking her mind. But she values tradition as well,” says Akhila.
For the next shot, the actor has to smile at the camera and she does that perfectly, just the way choreographer Brinda master wanted her to. And the shot is okayed in one take.
‘Karyasthan' is being produced under the banner of Ann Media and will hit theatres this November.
Cinematography is by P. Sukumar. Lyrics by Kaithapram have been composed by Berny-Ignatius.
Still photographer is Abhilash Narayanan.
