The Malayalam film Ottu (Rendagam in Tamil) comes almost four years after Theevandi, director Fellini TP’s last release. Pre-production on the bilingual had started a couple of months before Theevandi hit theatres and filming was due to start in 2020 when the pandemic struck. Filming was then completed over two schedules, punctuated by the second wave in 2021, Fellini explains. The films release on September 8.
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The trailer promises a big, action-packed film that stars Arvind Swami and Kunchacko Boban in lead roles. Kunchacko referred to its as the ‘biggest budget’ film he has ever been part of. Arvind Swami who returns to Malayalam after Devaraagam (1996), plays mafia boss, Dawood, and the film is about the relationship between the two characters and if they can trust each other. Ottu implies a mole or source/cause of deception.
Ottu is a world apart from Theevandi, which was located in a small village in Kerala and centred on the happenings there and Tovino’s character Bineesh Damodaran, a chain-smoker.
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“The script and the core idea - the bond between two men — is something we do not see much in our cinema and it appealed to me. I wanted to explore the theme. Since it could be placed anywhere, we chose Mumbai-Mangaluru and the places around these cities. I wanted to make this film on a large scale and decided to make it bilingual,” Fellini explains over the phone. The script, by S Sanjeev, came via his editor Appu Bhattathiri.
The team felt Arvind Swami would be apt as Dawood, the underworld boss. Over two sittings, the actor was on board. Fellini had been wanting to work with Kunchacko for a long time, in fact, he had even pitched Theevandi to the actor who did not take it up due to other commitments. “The role is different from what he has done earlier, he too was a perfect fit .”
The film was shot in both languages simultaneously. He laughs off the difference in the metre when comes to performances — understated for Malayalam and not so for Tamil. “Not really, it was about finding the balance [of acting]; we focussed on the performances and stayed true to the script.” More than filming in two languages, he says, the harder task was planning the shoot across various cities during COVID-19, due to the restrictions and the pandemic.
The surprise package of the film is Jackie Shroff, who appears in a cameo. Fellini refuses to reveal what the role is. “We wanted a star like him on board and we managed to get the man himself.”
What does getting two non-Malayali actors on board speak about the perception of films made in Malayalam? “They have huge respect for Malayalam cinema, which is perceived as the best in regional cinema. People keenly follow Malayalam films now, especially since the pandemic. We also need to factor in the fact that they would be listening to a number of other scripts/narrations in other languages. So, if they are interested in our projects, it implies that our films are interesting for them to do them.”