Announcement of Kunchacko Boban starrer as the first Malayalam film to be selected in the main competition category at the 75th Locarno Film Festival. The announcement is the first Malayalam film to be screened in the main competition section of the festival, which started 75 years ago. The fair will start on August 3, 2022, and the official announcement about the selection of notification was made today. After 17 long years, Anthaya became the first Indian film to be selected for the main competition category.
The film is written, directed and edited by Mahesh Narayanan, starring Kunchacko Boban. Against the backdrop of the epidemic in Noida, the film revolves around the efforts of a distressed Malayali couple to migrate out of the country for a better life. A fake video clip is circulating among colleagues at the factory where the couple works. This causes an emotional upheaval in their relationship. Starring Kunchacko Boban and Divya Prabha in lead roles, the film also stars famous theater and film stars like Loveleen Mishra, Danish Hussain, Faisal Malik and Kannan Arunachalam.
“It is truly an honor to have ‘Ariyip’ selected for the international competition category of such a film festival. I have weaved the film with the honesty of R and I am happy and grateful to have been rewarded for it.” – Mahesh Narayanan responded.
Kunchacko Boban said that he is very happy that this film has received such an honor as the family film production company Udaya Pictures, founded by his grandfather and father, completes 75 years. “This is a personal honor for me as well as a dedication to my grandfather and father who have a long tradition of making great Malayalam films. I am grateful to my dear friend, writer, co-producer, director Mahesh Narayanan, co-producer Shebin Bakar and the entire team of “Notice” for being a part of such a beautiful film. It was an unforgettable trip,” says Kunchako.
Earlier, Rituparnaghosh’s Bengali film ‘Antarmahal’ was selected for the Locarno Film Festival competition category. Antarmahal was unveiled in 2005. After 17 years, we can be proud that the Indian film selected for the competition category at the festival is a Malayalam film. The last Malayalam film screened at Locarno was veteran filmmaker Adoor Gopalakrishnan’s ‘Nizhalkooth’ in 2011.