KOCHI: Siddharth Shiva, the director of ‘Ain’ which won the National Award for the Best Malayalam film, said the National Award is the best publicity his film could get.
Expressing his excitement over the award, Siddhartha said movies like ‘Ain’ are made in a tight budget and it is impossible to spend a huge amount for publicity.
“I don’t have another `50 lakh for its marketing and the award, I hope, will do that task,” said Siddartha who had earlier won a National Award for his directorial debut ‘101 Chodyangal’.
On the contrary, he said, the award can also affect the theatrical release of his movie negatively. “’Ain’ might get tagged as an art house movie, causing repel from a section audience of the audience in watching it in theatres,” Siddhartha said.
The day also springed a double delight for the team as Musthafa, the lead actor of ‘Ain’, won the Special Jury Award. Siddhartha said Musthafa is truly gifted actor.
“He will be an asset for the industry. All he need is a role to showcase his talents. As of now, he is very under-utilised,” he said.
‘Ain’ was the third venture of Siddhartha Shiva and focused on the life of a Muslim household in Northern Kerala.