Malayalis are about to get their own superhero soon. Anson Paul, who was last seen in Abrahaminte Santhathikal as the younger brother of Mammootty’s character, will be headlining Malayalam’s first superhero film The Gambler, to be helmed by Oru Mexican Aparatha-fame Tom Emmatty. Anson also appeared in Su...Su...Sudhi Vatmeekam and Solo.
The actor says the project, which is his next feature film after Abrahaminte Santhathikal, has been in discussion for a while. “I can’t wait to start working in it. I’ve been a fan of some of the popular western superheroes since my childhood so something like this happening in Malayalam cinema is a cause for excitement. And as with all the roles I’ve done so far, I expect to do something different for this one too.”
Tom says The Gambler will be shot on a small budget with plans to develop sequels featuring additional characters in the future. “Considering the complexity of a project like this, we are planning everything systematically with storyboards and everything. There will be some fantasy elements involved. The scripting is almost done. Pre-production work is currently underway. The rest of the details will be revealed soon.”
The director promises us that the film won’t be anything like Hrithik Roshan’s Krrish. “We are introducing a fresh character with no references to previous superheroes. We want to avoid all the stereotypes we have seen before. However, there will be a few elements to make it more relatable to Malayali audiences. It’s going to be realistic but at the same time not too serious either. It is being planned as a family-friendly entertainer with something informative for the kids,” says Tom.The team is expected to start filming early next year. They have shared with us a preliminary sketch to give readers an idea of what to expect.