Madhura Raja is the biggest release of the week.Mammootty starrer Madhura Raja hit screens on Friday. Directed by Vysakh, the film also stars Jai in a significant role. It was speculated that Madhura Raja is a sequel to Pokkiri Raja, but Mammootty clarified that the film is not a sequel.
Mammootty said, “This film is not the sequel to Pokkiri Raja but it is Raja’s second appearance in new terrain, with new characters. We are keeping some characters like Mangalodayam Manoharan (Salim Kumar) from the first part. He is in the second part because he is writing a novel based on the life of Raja. He has already done the first part (of his novel). Now, he will be writing the second part. That’s how the story begins.”
The film also marks the debut of Sunny Leone in Mollywood. She will be seen in a special dance number.
Athiran, starring Fahadh Faasil and Sai Pallavi, also released today. The film promises to be a thriller that is set in a psychiatric hospital. In the trailer, it was shown that Sai Pallavi’s character was bound in chains. Fahadh plays the role of a mental health professional.
Athiran is the directorial debut of Vivek and is written by P. F. Mathew. The film also stars Atul Kulkarni, Prakash Raj, Surabhi, Sudev Renji Panicker, Lena and Shanthi Krishna.
Also hitting screens down south are Tamil films Watchman, Gangs of Madras and Rocky, Kannada film Kavaludaari and Telugu film Chitralahari, starring Sai Tej, Kalyani Priyadarshan, Nivetha Pethura and Sunil among others.
In North India, it is going to be a lacklustre weekend with films The Tashkent Files, Paharganj, Blackboard vs Whiteboard and Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyun Aata Hai?. Giving tough competition to these films will be Hollywood releases Pet Sematary and Hellboy.
Sai Pallavi on Athiran
In an interview with Firstpost, Sai Pallavi said, "The role was interesting, something different from a lot of scripts that came my way. I did tell the director (Vivek) to count me in if there are very few dialogues. I didn’t want to sound foreign if I am playing a Malayali. Thankfully, this had very few dialogues. Also, it was an experience to watch Fahad Faasil transform into his character. He is a switch on and switch off actor."
Mammootty on Madhura Raja
During an interaction, Mammootty addressed the relevance of Madhura Raja as it is releasing nine years after Pokkiri Raja. He said, "Human values or emotions do not change with time. This film is about good defeating evil. Film franchises have been successful worldwide. We enjoy Avengers series without any complaints. And yet why are you asking so many questions when ‘paavam Raja’ (poor Raja) gets a sequel?"