Nithi Anand
The eagerly anticipated film ‘Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam’, featuring a collaboration between Lijo Jose Pellissery and Mammootty, received an overwhelmingly positive response during the fourth day of the International Film Festival in Thiruvananthapuram.
The plot follows James (played by Mammootty), a man who is returning from a pilgrimage to Velankani with his family and makes a stop in a Tamil Nadu village. However, things take an unexpected turn when James starts behaving strangely, as if he is a completely different person. The film has multiple layers and has been praised as another masterpiece from Lijo Jose Pellissery.
Director Lijo Jose Pellissery and screenwriter S. Hareesh were present for the screening of ‘Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam’. A large crowd had gathered outside Tagore theatre, eager to watch the film which was one of the nine competing films in the International Competition section on Day 4.
Other films screened on the same day included ‘Our Home’, ‘Cordially Yours’, ‘Memoryland’ by Kim Quy Bui, and ‘Tug of War’. Alvaro Brechner’s ‘A Twelve Year Night’ also received a positive response. In the homage section, Legendary screenwriter Johnpaul’s debut film ‘Chamaram’ was shown, along with the restored version of G. Aravindan’s ‘Thamp’ and Adoor Gopalakrishnan’s ‘Swayamvaram’, which celebrated its golden jubilee year. An open forum was held at Tagore theatre premises, moderated by Aju K Narayanan, with the participation of writer S Hareesh, Director Kamal KM, Jeo Baby, and Manoj khana to discuss contemporary Malayalam cinema.
