A social family drama wrapped with lots of humour and entertainment, debutant Manoj Aravindakshan’s ‘Swargathekkal Sundaram’ promises to be a perfect vacation outing.
The story that unfurls in 24 hours follows friendship, struggle and malice. “The story revolves around three main characters played by actors Sreenivasan, Lal and Joy Mathew. All three have an equal screen space,” says Manoj Aravindakshan.
Sathish, played by Sreenivasan, is a family man who has seen highs and lows of life. Through him the film also explores the camaraderie between Sathish and Maniyan. Lal plays Maniyan, a real estate and lottery agent.
“The film will be an out-and-out comedy but will also discuss some social issues faced in Kerala in lines of humour,” says the director.
The plot revolves around Sathish who encounters a crisis and how he solves it with the help of his good-natured friends. Mythili plays the female lead in the film with an interesting character name ‘Touchings Jaya’.
On the unusual name, the director says, “Jaya’s father was an alcoholic and it was she who used to haul her father from various bars. Like that she becomes a known face among the people who visit these bars. After her father’s death to make a living, she starts to supply touchings like peanuts and chips to these bars and hence the name.”
Ask the director who has assisted veterans like M T Vasudevan Nair and Joshiy, about the title of the film, he says, “Everyone is on a search for heaven and heaven is there where happiness resides. Life becomes more happy and meaningful when we live for others. So in the movie also, when the characters realise this, they find their real heaven too.”
Joy Mathew plays an abkari in the film. “He is a businessman and like most businessmen, he is a money minded person,” says Manoj.
Muthumani plays Dr Renu while Asha Aravind plays Sathish’s wife. Sreejith Ravi, Jaffer Idukki and Niyas Bakker also come in other important roles. “We are also introducing a Master Aaryan in the film as the son of Sathish. It is through him that the whole story moves forward,” explains Manoj.
There are two songs in the film composed by Rakesh Kesavan and crooned by duos Vijay Yesudas-Renjini Jose and Najim Arshad-Hesham Abdul Wahab. The story is penned by Rajesh Raghavan and camera is cranked by Sameer Haq. The film produced by Shaji Thomas under the banner of Ponnu films will hit the screens by this month end.