The filming of Mammootty’s latest, Unda, is progressing smoothly. We had earlier reported that Sham Kaushal is handling the film’s action choreography. In a brief chat with Express, the veteran stunt director, who worked on many popular Bollywood films such as Dangal, Dhoom-3, and Bajirao Mastani, says the film’s fight sequences are “very realistic”.
The father of actor Vicky Kaushal (Manmarziyan, Raman Raghav 2.0), Sham Kaushal was brought in to handle the film’s major action set-piece which takes place in the climax portions. According to Kaushal, the team didn’t have to rely on dupes or special effects.
“All the fights are done by Mammootty himself. This is not a larger-than-life story; it’s honest with realistic situations. Naturally, this demanded real action. There is nothing over-the-top (as in Dabangg). The whole thing takes place in one location. What would happen when a few men are pitted against many? That’s the essence of the conflict here. It has more to do with the characters’ willpower and confidence. Sometimes you have to summon power from within you that you thought never existed,” explains Kaushal, who was all praise for Mammootty. “I’m working with him after 22 long years. He is one of the greatest actors in Indian cinema, and he has got that same energy he had back then.”
Kaushal just wrapped up the sequence and added that unlike in some films where the climax sequence was shot first, it was not the case with Unda. “We did most of it in sequence as per written in the script, but then we also had to improvise a few portions while keeping the basic structure intact.”
Unda, which is directed by Anuraga Karikkin Vellam-fame Khalid Rahman and produced by Krishnan Sethukumarr (Moviee Mill) in association with Gemini Studios, started filming last month. Mammootty plays the role of a police officer with Shine Tom Chacko, Jacob Gregory, Sudhi Koppa, Arjun Ashokan, Dileesh Pothan, and Alencier Ley Lopez appearing in supporting roles.
Gavemic U Ary (Jigarthanda) is the director of photography and Prashanth Pillai is handling the music department. Unda is being shot in Kasargod, Chattisgarh, and Mangalore. It is expected to release in January.